


paint it red

by CMQ31



Category: DBSK | Tohoshinki | TVfXQ | TVXQ, SHINee, Super Junior, f(x)
Genre: Action & Romance, Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Drama, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Humor, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2018-03-11
Packaged: 2019-01-26 05:32:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 33,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12550248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CMQ31/pseuds/CMQ31
Summary: After 2 senior agents within the organization went MIA, Jung Yunho is assigned to their mission along with his partner, Kim Heechul. However, after Heechul insists on a temporary leave to spend time with his fiancé, Yunho ends up partnered with the angst-ridden newbie, Shim Changmin. Needless to say, internal conflicts were inevitable.





	1. Beginnings pt.1

**Author's Note:**

> Reposted from aff.
> 
> Ages are not according to their real ages. I had to change it up a bit due to characterization purposes
> 
> Main:
> 
> Changmin (25)
> 
> Yunho (28)
> 
>  
> 
> Characters within the organization:
> 
> Amber (26)
> 
> BoA (29)
> 
> Heechul (30)
> 
> Hyukjae (27)
> 
> Kyuhyun (25)
> 
> Krystal (24)
> 
> Minho (24)
> 
> Siwon (27)
> 
> Sooyoung (27)
> 
> Key (26)
> 
>  
> 
> Others:
> 
> Donghae (24)
> 
> Hangeng (32)
> 
> Jaejoong (29)
> 
> Junsu (27)

_Some time ago..._

 

He finds himself running as soon as he knew that he fucked up big time. As soon as the alarms went off, he took off from the room and ran as fast as he could, not caring if he was actually being followed or not.

 

"Agent Kim, come in," he spoke through his communicator, only to receive static, or just plain silence. It was obvious that the signal would be jammed in the basement.

 

The only other option was to run until he finds the exit, which he doubts that it'll be an easy task. The building was like a maze; if getting in was a challenge, so was getting out. But now that he's been found out, it won't matter anymore. He needs to focus on getting out without getting caught by the security.  

 

He unconsciously picks up the pace when he notices that the exit wasn't far. He smiles tiredly at the thought of finally completing his mission and finally being able to go back home. But on the downside, his legs felt like giving up; he's been running for what seemed like forever. Aside from that, his breathing was ragged and his whole body was drenched in sweat, it was as if he was dumped by a bucket of water by Hyukjae whenever he slept anywhere else besides his own bedroom.

 

The alarms going off made his ears ring though he tries to get used to it. It wasn't the first time nor will it be the last for him to go through something like this. Yet it wasn't his fault that he's been caught, he's known to be very discreet on the field.

 

His mind drifted to the thought of the junior agents within his agency. They seemed all cold and ruthless on the field, but he knew how innocent and softhearted most of them actually are. They all spoke of how they looked up to him as an elder brother figure. Not only do the younger agents admire him, the senior agents also looked up to him despite being older. The thought of his colleagues made him smile a little.

 

Agent Park. His colleagues knew him as Agent Park.

 

He grips the object in his hands a bit tighter after remembering his purpose, the purpose of the whole mission and why it was vital for him and the whole damn world to get it done.

 

But here he was, running for his life after a big fuck-up and if he gets caught, it's all over.

 

Agent Park was a senior agent, having been on the field for years and is very respected by the whole organization, whether younger or older. Though if he were honest, Agent Park was afraid of the mission's outcome. But he wasn't a pessimist; he was a realist.

 

"Agent Park-"

 

He presses the communicator close to his ear, relieved that someone spoke to him after hours of silence and alarms.

 

"Thank God- where are you, Agent Kim?" he manages to say despite running out of breath.

 

The person on the other line hisses and ignores his question. "Where the fuck are _you_?" Clearly, he pissed that they've been caught. Well, who wouldn't, really?

 

Agent Park winces at Agent Kim's raised tone. "Calm your tits, I'm almost out. You know the drill, stay put and-"

 

"-Don't get caught. We all know that. But seems like you've broken rule number two," he jeers. "I'm disappointed that you've forgotten. You've been in the field longer than I have."

 

But Agent Park wasn't just his partner; he was a longtime friend, someone Agent Kim would take a bullet for. Their relationship was completely work-based at first, though throughout the years, the trust between them wasn't simply trust between co-workers. Even the director himself thought there wasn't a more compatible duo than them. Not _yet_ anyways. But that's a story for later.

 

Agent Park laughs. "I did, huh..." He slows down after the pain on his legs became unbearable. There was really no end to this hallway, apparently. It went on and on like a maze.

 

Agent Kim notices that the latter had stop running. Something churned within him.

 

"You stopped running."

 

He knew Agent Park would never forget anything he started. Surely, he would go on with this mission.

  
Right?

 

But why did he stop running?

 

"I..." Agent Park starts, "I don't know about this..."

 

Agent Kim started to assume the worst. No, he can't be a fucking pessimist at this time. He needs to think rationally. Rationally being that he should fucking trust that his partner was not thinking of giving up.

 

"Have you lost your mind?!" he finds himself yelling into the communicator, not caring if he blows his cover because of this. Then again, both of his biggest weaknesses were right in front of his eyes; his anger and his best friend.

 

There was a reason why Director Lee forbade them to have a close relationship. He didn't ban friendship or team dynamics, but being intimate or too close with a colleague or anyone in general was something to avoid. Attachment towards another agent was also looked down upon. It wasn't that he was some cold bitch, but it was for the sake of executing missions perfectly and being able to do the questionable.

 

"Agent Kim, I suggest that you make your leave now," Agent Park commands him.

 

"I'm not leaving without you," he retorts.

 

 _'So fucking cheesy...this guy, I swear...'_ Agent Park chuckles weakly.

 

"This isn't some bullshit romance novel, agent. It's the matter of making rational decisions and survival of the fittest," he warns the younger.

 

"Rational!? You're the one making the stupid decisions!" Agent Kim growls. "And none of that even made any fucking sense!"

 

"Exactly," Agent Parks says smugly. "Now, I don't want to hear your voice anymore."

 

"What the fuck- Park J-"

 

Agent Park narrows his eyes. "I don't care how dramatic you want to sound right now, but _never_ ever drop our real names on the field, agent. I could get you suspended for that," he warns.

 

Agent Kim scowls. "Well too bad you'd be warning no one cause if you don't get the fuck out of there, you will die," Agent Kim scolds the elder. "Just...hurry over here."

 

Agent Park was surprised at Agent Kim's change of demeanor. But of course, he was proud that the latter was able to hold back his anger. Agent Park hears multiple footsteps rushing towards his direction and he knew that he was close to being done for. He fell onto his knees after a surge of pain went through his legs.

 

Truthfully, he shouldn't have taken this mission when his legs were healing.

 

"I can't. You have a bigger chance to survive compared to me. Save yourself." He was tired. No, he was very exhausted. Agent Kim being uncooperative is tiring him even more.

 

"No. You're coming with me whether you like it or not."

 

He curses the younger for being so hardheaded. So _fucking_ hardheaded.

 

He barks out a weak laughter. "We're breaking so many of our rules right now..."

 

_"We have seized the intruder! Requesting for backup!"_

 

_'Ah...so this is it.'_

 

"You're never one for the rules anyway," Agent Kim comments. Maybe he's finally submitting to him. Maybe his thick head finally broke.

 

"But deadass get your fucking ass right here or I'll-"

 

Park stops him. "Goodbye, Agent Kim." With that, he takes off the communicator and smashes it on the ground, immediately ending the call.

 

Agent Kim crushes his own as soon as he knew what the other had done.

 

_"We found the other intruder!"_

 

Kim turns around.

 

"How convenient..."

* * *

_Present..._

 

Yunho kicks the vending machine again, hoping for a different outcome. But unfortunately, his money and coffee are forever trapped inside the machine. The director had strictly banned all personnel to mess with the vending machines since they require high maintenance and the fact that it would be considered a crime to tamper with them, so Yunho couldn't get Kyuhyun to work his magic on it.

 

 _'High maintenance my_ ass _,'_ Yunho thinks to himself. "Stupid, crappy, shitty, machine," he mutters spitefully.

 

Eventually, Yunho gives up. He makes a mental note to report this problem to BoA, his superior, so she can report it to the director, the big boss. Sighing, he reluctantly leaves the break room with a heavy heart and empty handed.

 

On the way to BoA's office, he passes by Lee Hyukjae. He was holding a cup of coffee while phoning someone.

 

Yunho observes him carefully; well, mostly his coffee. It was his usual, a hot cup of cappuccino with no extra sugar. Unlike Yunho, Hyukjae always brought his coffee from home, freshly brewed, instead of buying coffee from the vending machine.

 

He walks towards Hyukjae confidently.

 

However, Hyukjae didn't notice the latter walking up to him, his mind and ears were glued to whomever he was speaking to on the phone.

 

Yunho clears his throat, which usually meant that he had something important to tell.

 

Hyukjae eyes him and slumps.

 

"...Yeah, sorry baby, I gotta go. Big boss has summoned me," Hyukjae smiles to the phone. "Don't worry, I'll call you as soon as possible. Love ya'." Hyukjae ends the call and turns to meet Yunho's eyes, clearly unimpressed.

 

Lee Hyukjae, known as Eunhyuk on the field, is one of Yunho's juniors. He's fairly new to the field and had only joined a year or two ago. Yunho admires his efficiency in work and how he manages to finish his missions clean. He's perfect spy material.

 

He has a bad habit of constantly dying his hair. He insisted that it would be good for missions so people wouldn't recognize him easily every time he's sent to the field. All of Hyukjae's partner's whims fell into deaf ears when the latter scolded him that hair color won't make his face any less recognizable.

 

Yunho flashes an awkward smile.

 

"So uh...how's your boyfriend?"

 

Having a relationship wasn't particularly forbidden. However, there were rules, one of them being that you should never _ever_ tell your partner about your work. Hyukjae took it to another level and didn't tell any of his colleagues about his boyfriend's identity. Obviously, everyone was curious about the cold (but mischievous) Lee Hyukjae's live life.

 

Hyukjae averts his gaze from Yunho. "He's...alright." Yunho had no idea who Hyukjae's boyfriend was, but all he knew is that a) he's obviously a dude, and b) he makes Hyukjae's coffee every morning.

 

Yunho frowns. "Well that's nice, I suppose. By the way, you never told me his name-"

 

Hyukjae places his coffee on the table and crosses his arms. "Cut the chase, Jung. What do you want, really?"

 

Yunho flinches, not expecting Hyukjae to notice earlier. "Well uh."

 

His eyes landed on the cup of coffee innocently sitting on the table. Hyukjae follows Yunho's gaze and immediately stood in front of the coffee, as if he was a mother bear protecting her cub.

 

"No, nope, no, no way. My boyfriend made that for me this morning and I don't want you or your gross mouth _anywhere_ near it," Hyukjae growls. Yunho furrows his brows.

 

Of course Hyukjae would use his boyfriend as a defense mechanism. He's been nothing but a sweetheart to Hyukjae and was probably the only reason behind Hyukjae's genuine smiles. Yunho never met him, but he was sure that this man was an actual angel. Yunho was quite envious of Hyukjae's relationship since the younger appeared more relaxed and actually happy ever since he announced that he was dating someone and came out to everyone all at once.

 

Yunho would occasionally steal a few glances at Hyukjae's face when he calls his boyfriend from work. His facial expression was soft and the tone of his voice was gentle. Like he was holding a kitten in his hand. Yunho was real fucking envious of that.

 

The corner of Yunho's mouth twitches. "Well, fuck, Hyukjae. I really need coffee right now and the fucking vending machine is broken _again_ -"

 

Hyukjae's eyebrows rise. "What? Again? Well damn, the director really needs to up the facility budgets."

 

"I know right. All the shit about it needing high maintenance is fucking bull," Yunho grumbles, earning a chuckle from Hyukjae.

 

"Sounds like someone's having a bad morning," Hyukjae teases. Yunho stares at Hyukjae blankly.

 

"Well no shit, man."

 

Hyukjae laughs. "Don't take your anger out on me, you can kick all the machine you want, y'know. Maybe the big boss will finally do something about it."

 

Yunho nods. "That fucking machine took my money _and_ coffee and the chances of a happy morning..." He eyes Hyukjae's coffee again. "Well, y'know, unless someone with a good heart and a very handsome face would-"

 

Hyukjae's smile fell. "No." Obviously, Hyukjae would refuse. Yunho was dumb to try and ask.

 

"...Your heart isn't good and neither is your face, anyway."

 

Taking a jab at Hyukjae's face was a low thing to do, which means that it's Yunho's area of specialty.

 

Obviously Hyukjae is actually quite handsome and Yunho was merely riling him up by poking at his insecurities.

 

Hyukjae gasps, horrified. "You take that back you...you dick!"

 

"Nah," Yunho waves him off. "I'm gonna look for someone who actually cares about my well being in the morning. Have a good day, Hyukjae." He appeared smiling, though anyone could tell the obvious irritation he hid behind his eyes. Yunho walks away while Hyukjae stood by his spot, seething, Yunho chuckles at the younger man's short temper and walks away.

 

Though karma was a bitch and Yunho realized he shouldn't have messed with Hyukjae because it's already 11 AM and his search for coffee didn't go well. His superior, BoA, was also coffee deprived and BoA without her morning coffee equals to Yunho being the victim of her never-ending nagging.

 

But despite that, everything else in the building went along smoothly like it always has. Besides BoA (and Hyukjae) being bitchy the whole morning, Siwon was being a good junior for once and actually offered Yunho to buy him coffee. Yunho declined, not wanting to look helpless and desperate in front of a (rich) junior.

 

Choi Siwon has been Hyukjae's partner ever since the two were assigned together on their first mission. Yunho would describe Siwon as every teen girl's dream boyfriend since even Yunho himself could not believe that a man so chivalrous actually existed. Siwon was nice with everyone with one exception and that exception being Lee Hyukjae. The two have amazing chemistry on the field though Siwon can be a dick and would always try riling Hyukjae up. Yunho would agree that Siwon's teasing comments about Hyukjae's boyfriend crossed many lines though the younger didn't seem to care. It was one thing Yunho hated about Siwon. He didn't know when to stop being a dick once he enters dick mode.

 

"Jung Yunho," someone announces out loud, which causes Yunho to jump and snap out of his thoughts. Though he was a bit annoyed by the intruding voice since a) he was still fucking pissy, and b being...well.

 

"What is it, Heechul?" Yunho grumbles, standing up from his seat.

 

Heechul smirks at Yunho's obvious pissy attitude. Heechul knew him too well. Besides, he's known Yunho longer than anyone in the building with the latter being his childhood friend. Though they didn't work for the same organization knowing the other would be there, it was all a big coincidence. Yunho lost contact with Heechul a year before they joined the organization, so it wasn't planned at all. Funny enough, Heechul was also assigned as Yunho's partner during missions when required.

 

"I found Hyukjae dead in a ditch after you took a jab at his fragile insecurities," Heechul informs helpfully, "so what got your panties in a twist? Did Siwon offer you money after seeing your piss poor car again?"

 

Yunho's eye twitches.

 

"I'm happy with what I have, thank you," he mutters.

 

 Heechul smirks and leans against the wall, arms crossed over him. "You can tell big bro Hee Hee all your problems," he says in a singsong tone. He receives no response from the younger man and Heechul's smirk shifted into an ugly sneer, "just spill the beans you brat."

 

Yunho glowers at Heechul, the elder's attitude right now was clearly not helping him. "I want my morning coffee."

 

"It's 11 AM."

 

"I want my _morning coffee_ ," Yunho repeats.

 

"Ah," Heechul's posture visibly relaxes.

 

"The machine fucking broke again," Yunho treaded his fingers through his hair in frustration.

 

Heechul's eyes roll at that. "Yeah, they wasted all of the company budget on fixing Kyuhyun's computers after Hyukjae spilled coffee all over it. That brat requested the latest and most advanced models."

 

Cho Kyuhyun's one of the youngest yet the smartest agent within the organization. He's your typical computer whizz, though he is pretty good with other devices and his favorite catchphrase is saying "I'm in" in a serious (yet mocking) manner whenever he manages to open Hyukjae's phone. Unfortunately, Hyukjae never bothered to password his phone anyway despite being a _secret agent_.

 

Yunho chuckles.

 

Heechul shakes his head. "Anyway," he starts, giving Yunho a genuinely concerned look, "I'm sure that's not the only reason behind your grumpiness this morning."

 

 _'Wow. Heechul-hyung is actually being a good hyung right now,'_ Yunho thinks.

 

"There's nothing," Yunho answers quickly, the alarms go off in his head whenever someone steps into the territory of his inner feelings.

 

"Bitchass liar."

 

"There's really nothing, Heechul-hyung."

 

Heechul stalks over to Yunho. "That's what you say every time," he sighs, "what's been bothering you, really? I swear I'm not doing this to mock you or anything." Yunho eyes the older for a while and the two fell into silence.

 

After a while, Yunho finally speaks. "I've been feeling a bit lonely nowadays."

 

"Hm?"

 

Yunho contemplates whether he should continue telling Heechul or keep it to himself. Luckily, a voice diverts their attentions.

 

"BoA called for you both," Lee Sungmin, a senior agent, says; a soft look adorning his face. Yunho knew better than to mess with Lee Sungmin despite his gentle personality, he was after all, the best fighter in the organization.

 

Sungmin left the two be after Heechul and Yunho stood up. He was a man of few words, apparently, unless when he's drunk.

 

"Wonder what she wants with us," Yunho comments. He was already on his feet and walking towards BoA's office. "I went to her office earlier and she nearly killed me."

 

"She threw a mug and it was _plastic_."

 

"Shut up. You weren't there."


	2. Beginnings pt.2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heechul and BoA get into a disagreement. Yunho is introduced to Shim Changmin

Heechul slammed his fists against BoA's table. "Hell no! I already applied for a leave _months_ ago and no way in hell am I supposed to be assigned on any mission!" Yunho flinches at the sound of the table cracking, while BoA remains unfazed by his partner's outburst. Yunho wanted to say something, though BoA's knowing glare shut him up and Yunho obediently backs off.

 

It hadn't been 5 minutes and they already had a disagreement and Heechul already threw a fit. It was a new record. Last time it took 5 minutes and 40 seconds.

 

BoA had it coming, however. She knew about Heechul's request for a 4-month leave to spend time with his fiancé and prepare for their wedding. However, the mission she was about to assign Yunho and Heechul requires years of experience on the field, or at least anyone who's able to handle things more efficient and professional compared to some people, which BoA thought the latter 2 had.

 

She takes a deep breath. "Agent Kim...we do not tolerate violence against my office furniture," her gaze flickers towards Yunho, "or any building facilities, really. It's very much against our rules here."

 

Yunho wondered what his purpose of being in the room really is. With how bitchy both sides were being now, it could last forever. Yunho thought about trying to slip out unnoticed with

 

Heechul backs away, rolling his eyes as he did. "You're unbelievable, Kwon BoA. This is unacceptable."

 

"It's the matter of global security, Agent Kim," BoA drawls.

 

"I applied for a leave months ago, in case you didn't hear that before. You can assign Hyukjae for this...or even Sungmin! Sungmin hadn't done anything for the past few months!" Heechul rants.

 

BoA was getting tired, Yunho notices. He thought about intervening for her. "Heechul, this isn't Hyukjae and Siwon's expertise and Sungmin works alone, remember?" Yunho reminds his partner.

 

"Then you can assign Yunho _and_ Sungmin to the mission," Heechul jeers.

 

"Sungmin _prefers_ to work alone, and as his juniors in work, we need to respect that decision," Yunho responds, feeling somewhat heated.

 

BoA nods. "I'd also like to add that Agent Lee Sungmin has been busy recently, it's against the rules for me to move him out of his current mission and put him into another one. I apologize, Agent Kim. You'll need to put that wedding on hold. Now can we move on to the mission briefing-"

 

Heechul scoffs. "Well according to the rulebook that you seem to love so much, if I had given you a notice for a leave months before your or even my knowledge of this mission, the leave comes first no matter what." BoA sat still, silent. Heechul sees this as a sign of his victory.

 

Though he was dead wrong.

 

"So your fiancé is more important than the safety of millions of people?" BoA enquires. "I know that you'll probably say 'yes', but let's say that your fiancé could be part of the 'millions of people'."

 

Heechul's anger seemed to have faded; his aggressive demeanor was replaced with a pleading look. "Please, BoA-"

 

"You're putting the lives of millions of innocent people on stake for your selfish desires, Agent Kim," BoA's tone was firm, determined to corner Heechul for once. "Think about your fiancé, your friends...your family..."

 

"Guilt tripping never works on me, Kwon," Heechul crosses his arms, "you know that. So why try?"

 

"I'm not guilt-tripping anyone," BoA states, "I'm merely stating the consequences you're overlooking." there was a brief pause, "I'm very disappointed in you, Agent Kim. Your selfish desires are clouding your moral values. It proves that the 'no having attachments' rule must be reinforced to our agents and staff to avoid a situation like this in the future."

 

Heechul's eye twitches. "It literally has nothing to do with my fiancé!" He strode forwards again, looking down to BoA. If it were another person and not BoA, Heechul would most likely be fired the moment he talked back. "I applied for a leave. We have hundreds of agents who handle whatever mine and Yunho's expertise is, you don't have to depend on me all the time! I'm sorry that I have shitty timing, but please, BoA..."

 

Yunho stood still, head ducked down, refusing to watch his two seniors fight.

 

BoA did not respond.

 

"Please..." Heechul's determination is strong, but his voice came off quiet.

 

"...We're being threatened, Heechul," BoA finally says.

 

Heechul backs away, watching BoA carefully.

 

"We...we don't know who or what they are...they call themselves Helios," BoA says. Global-scale cyber terrorism; we don't even know if they truly exist or not, not even Kyuhyun was able to track them."

 

Yunho had heard of Helios. Since Yunho's expertise was on cyber crime, he was bound to do some small observation in anonymous-based websites. He saw a group of people discussing about the existence of Helios. One of them claims that they had their company destroyed by Helios, though they brushed that person off. Another one had claimed that some websites vanished due to their work. Though the thread ended after around 30 replies, so Yunho didn't see Helios as anything threatening since there was no solid proof.

 

Heechul narrows his eyes. "Could be a mere bunch of hacker kids and their empty threats, BoA. You know how many hackers nowadays claim to be able to do so, y'know. Remember Kyuhyun back then?"

 

Kyuhyun had been a rogue hacktivist who had constantly try to tamper with a bunch of big organizations. He had been a rebellious kid back then and yet he was labeled as a wanted man by many countries. It was until Heechul came to his current agency, SM, and managed to find Kyuhyun. They arrested him, though he had only been 16 back then and Heechul thought he'd be a waste with the talent he had if he were to rot in prison. Heechul took him under his wing and trained him.

 

"Kyuhyun threatened to expose us," BoA says bitterly, also unhappy with SM's deep secrets, "it could've left us crippled and vulnerable in public's eyes."

 

"Which is why you all should be grateful that I managed to calm the kid down," Heechul deadpans. "He was just lost and troubled."

 

"Helios proved their capabilities. Along with the message, they sent us...files. Personal files," BoA explains, causing both Yunho and Heechul's eyebrows to rise in curiosity. "Personal files on all of us. Including the people we have relations with, whether familial or romantic."

 

Yunho's mind immediately went to his younger stepbrother, Donghae, someone he considers more important than his job and that's saying a lot. The feeling of worry washes over him.

 

"That's fucking insane," Heechul hisses, "what do they do, stalk us?"

 

"Exactly, Agent Kim. They could be stalking us. In fact, they could be listening to us as we speak," BoA drawls, causing a pregnant silence in the room, "but of course, they wouldn't go that far just yet."

 

"How would you know that?" Yunho questions.

 

No one would be surprised by the informal way Heechul and Yunho spoke to BoA in private. They've been friends for a very long time, even before their organization was formed. Yunho had known BoA since childhood and Heechul was Yunho's senior in high school whom he lost contact with for a while. It surprised Yunho that BoA and Heechul had met during a peaceful protest a long time ago since Heechul seemed like the type to not bother with such things.

 

BoA and Heechul joined SM before Yunho did. BoA made her way up in the ranks while Heechul focused on improving himself and becoming useful to everyone else. Though he had an odd job where he was the recruiter for SM whether he liked it or not. His expertise may be on cyber crimes, though he was also the guy who picks up stray dogs from the street. It was how Hyukjae, Kyuhyun, Krystal, Minho, and Sooyoung came to the team.

 

"Well, they hadn't contacted us for almost a few months," BoA starts, "the mission was being handled well and we had leads on who the people involved were. We had leads on Helios' existence," she explains. "I assigned Agent Park Jungsoo and Kim Youngwoon to this mission on January."

 

Ah, the infamous 'top secret mission' that had become a gossip in Yunho's department. Park Jungsoo, known as Leeteuk on the field, was one of SM's first agents, and so was Kim Youngwoon, also known as Kangin. Yunho wasn't very close with either of the two, keeping their relationship simply as another senior-junior relationship at work, never beyond that.

 

Yunho respected the two and admired Leeteuk very much. His leadership skills were something Yunho wanted to himself. Leeteuk managed to influence people to do as he says without forcing them to. It was as if all he needed to was to push a button and people would instantly follow him. He managed to build mutual respect between him and his subordinates and he would listen to what they had to say as well.

 

If Leeteuk was the brains, then Kangin was the muscle. He was like Leeteuk's right hand man and fortress. The two were the perfect pair with the best dynamics and Yunho couldn't imagine them completing a mission with any sort of flaws.

 

Heechul, on the other side, developed some sort of friendship with both Leeteuk and Kangin. Well, it was understandable since Heechul has been in the field longer than Yunho; obviously he's bound to know them better. Though Yunho had heard Heechul refer to them as his friends, meaning that their bond was something different.

 

Yunho often saw Heechul and Kangin fight. The two had very contrasting personalities and opinions that it was natural for them to fight like cats and dogs every morning. Despite that, Heechul had told Yunho that he considered Kangin as someone important.

 

"What happened to them?" Yunho inquires.

 

BoA sighs.

 

Heechul crosses his arms as he leans against the wall with his side. "We haven't seen them in a while..." Heechul carefully observes BoA's expression, "BoA...did they...?"

 

"We...haven't been able to get in contact them for a month. They were last seen in-" BoA was cut off by Heechul.

 

"So they're either dead or MIA," Heechul deadpans. "Just great. Wonderful. You're hoping we'd end up like them as well?"

 

BoA grits her teeth. "Kim Heechul."

 

"I wouldn't avoid the mission if I didn't assign for a leave, BoA. I'm just saying that you decided to wait for a month after they disappeared? Whose bullshit decision was that? Was it yours or the big boss'?" Heechul curses. "Leeteuk and Kangin could've been alive or at least we could've rescued them immediately if we made a move back then. Moreover, you didn't bother informing the rest of us about their disappearance? About their mission? About the Helios situation?"

 

BoA grips her pencil tight. "Heechul, you don't understand-"

 

"Then explain it to me! To us!" he gestures Yunho.

 

If anything, BoA looked even more pissed. "I was informed of this just this morning, Heechul," she gritted her teeth, "you don't think it doesn't hurt me either that two of our agents' whereabouts are unknown? That they could be _dead_?"

 

"That still doesn't answer why none of us knew about Helios!" Heechul slams his fists against her desk again, this time a small crack was visible.

 

Heechul remains quiet as the sound of BoA holding back her anger filled his ears. While Yunho was ready to piss himself seeing his two friends becoming really scary as minutes pass.

 

Heechul scoffs. "I'm sorry. I can't do this. This is too much." He turns around, patting Yunho's shoulder once before walking out the room and slamming the door shut, causing Yunho to flinch.

 

BoA's gaze was casted downwards, avoiding Yunho's judging look.

 

"If you want to say anything, say it now, Jung," BoA utters.

 

Yunho shrugs. "I have nothing to say, boss."

 

BoA leans back against her chair now facing Yunho. "I knew it would end like this with Heechul. I specifically called for you both because you and Heechul would know to continue whatever Leeteuk and Kangin had done."

 

"Anything with Heechul can end unexpectedly, really," Yunho sighs.

 

"That is why I already hatched up a backup plan for you," BoA began. "Since Heechul will be gone for a while, the higher ups have already decided on your temporary partner."

 

Oh?

 

"Temporary partner..." Yunho mutters. It'd be weird, Yunho thinks. He's been Heechul's partner for as long as he could remember. Hell, he's been Heechul's partner the moment he stepped his foot into the business. He couldn't imagine himself working with another, though it didn't mean he wasn't open to it.

 

"I will brief you both on the mission after you meet him. But," BoA's face shifts into a serious look again, "I need you to do me a favor, and in return, I'll push back the mission for a month. It's about your future partner."

 

Yunho had no idea who his temporary partner would be. With Sungmin's previous statements, he was sure it couldn't be him. Hyukjae and Siwon, despite the two already protesting for a partner change up, were still forced to work together by the higher ups. Key was someone Yunho would rather avoid and fortunately, he was temporarily assigned to work in SM's branch in China. Minho was happy being Amber's partner and Yunho remembers that they're currently on a mission in Thailand, while Sooyoung was still training Krystal in Japan. As for the rest of the staff, he didn't bother getting to know them.

 

"And that would be?"

 

BoA smirks, a blue folder already prepared under her hands.

 

* * *

 

Shim Changmin was no ordinary man.

 

One of the reasons being the fact that he was once considered a criminal.

 

And the second is the fact that he works for SM now.

 

It was a month ago when he landed his ass in the police station after getting into a fight with a bunch of thugs for the second time. He was considered dangerous by the police force and had made a name for himself in the streets. It was the highest thing he's ever achieved in his life, he thinks.

 

Changmin was also a genius, but he likes to keep it to himself.

 

A strange man called Kim Heechul had bailed him out before his parents found out. The man claims that he had been watching Changmin for a while, adding that using his talents for something so insignificant was a waste.

 

Rescuing animals from the streets wasn't an insignificant job, but Changmin listened to Heechul anyways. Heechul had instructed Changmin to call him if he's interested for a nice job with a good pay, though it comes with consequences, the elder grimly reminded him.

 

Changmin took the chance as fast as possible. Though he truly didn't expect working for an organization as big as SM. People would call him one of Heechul's stray dogs, whatever that meant.

 

He watches Heechul argue with BoA and another older man, who seemed to be the big guy who runs the place. Lee Cheolsu, Changmin catches his name when Heechul went off on a long rant on why they should consider letting Changmin join.

 

After Changmin had spoken with BoA and Cheolsu, they gave him a week to prove himself trustworthy and comparable with the other agents. Within a week, Changmin had proven himself worthy with a deal sealed. The deal being that he would have to work to SM unless he'd rather rot in prison for numerous the unreported crimes he's done, fraud, identity theft, violence, and many more.

 

Though it wasn't like Changmin could help it. He was poor. He needed to pay back the person who had cared for him for a long time.

 

Changmin shook his thoughts off and stood up. He observes his surroundings; he was currently standing inside a small 4-walled room with no windows and all alone. BoA had called him earlier, telling him to stay in the usual waiting room.

 

Though he was getting impatient. It has been an hour and still no word from his superior on what was about to happen or what he was supposed to do.

 

Changmin figures that she forgot about him or purposely left Changmin trapped in a small room so could starve to death. He decided to get out of the room for a short walk and some air. He was getting claustrophobic.

 

Stepping out, he feels like a bird free from its cage. He suddenly felt like he could stretch all of his long limbs as far as could, whereas he felt constricted in the room earlier.

 

Changmin looks around. The hallway was empty. He figured that everyone was in the main office or the refreshments room. Though he heard that the vending machine there had broken down for the 5th time this month. Cheolsu must not really care for the thirst of his subordinates. He hears someone clearing his throat behind him, startling the young man,

 

Changmin turns around to meet BoA and another man next to her.

 

He was tall, but not as tall as Changmin. His build was slightly bigger than his as well. The only similarity they had was the color of their hair, dark brown. However, they were styled differently. He would admit that Yunho had pretty eyes and he was quite good-looking, thought that's as far as compliments go. He could tell that personality-wise, he was nothing alike Changmin. Even the way he dresses was different than Changmin. Changmin would never think of showing up to work looking like a total doofus.

 

Changmin bows to his seniors before greeting them. BoA gestures the man next to her.

 

"Agent Shim, this is Jung Yunho," she turns to face Yunho, "Agent Jung, this is Shim Changmin, our newest addition." Yunho looks up to meet Changmin's gaze. He seems disinterested, though Yunho could feel a sense of distaste from the younger man. It was odd for him to think that way since Yunho had never met him.

 

"Pleased to meet you, Agent Shim," Yunho forces out as he slowly grabs to shake Changmin's waiting hand.

 

"Likewise, Agent Jung," Changmin drones.

 

BoA eyes them both, already sensing the tension between them. Their first meeting certainly didn't go according to what she had expected. Changmin seemed like the type of person to rebel against authority, while Yunho can be too controlling sometimes; it was clear from the aura he puts off.

 

"He has been assigned to be your temporary partner until Kim Heechul returns from his leave. Agent Jung, I hope you prepare him well for the next month," BoA muses. Yunho's squeezes Changmin's hand once more before finally letting it go. Changmin quickly pulls back his hand.

 

The moment their eyes met again, Changmin knew not to get too close to him.

 

 _'He isn't trustworthy_ ,' Yunho immediately thinks. He could read Changmin's eyes, he's being cautious around him and BoA which means that he's focused on hiding something from them.

 

"I look forward to work with you, Agent Shim," Yunho says, faking a smile.

 

"So do I."

 

 _'It's going to be a long ride,’_ Changmin surmises.


	3. Hate At First Sight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's going to be a very bad week for Changmin.

Fortunately, Yunho didn't have to sit down and play 20 questions with Changmin. BoA had explained to him that Changmin had to take care of some personal matters regarding his passport and some other things. 

 

Changmin was unlike most people he's met. His gaze was defying yet secretive in a way. He could read what the younger was feeling, though he couldn't really read what was going on in his mind. 

 

His hands were small, Yunho notices. His fingers, however, were long, and by the way his fingers looked, Yunho guesses that he at least plays the guitar. It was a known fact that cutting your nails is a must-do during fieldwork. Seems like Changmin had never been on the field yet.

 

Changmin was observing him as well. Yunho guesses that it was probably every agent’s first instinct whenever they meet someone new. Like how a dog would react whenever they meet another.

 

"Alright, now that you two are acquainted, we need to get back to work. Changmin, go take care of your passport, and Yunho, I need you to reread last month's mission reports before we put it away in the basement archives. Both of you are dismissed," Boa announces before walking away. 

 

Changmin's eyes never left Yunho.

 

"Is there something on my face, Shim?" Yunho enquires. The younger man shook his head.

 

"Nothing really," Changmin drawls, "this is one interesting ring you have," he adds. Yunho wondered what Changmin was referring to until he realized that the ring on his finger had gone. He looks up to see Changmin holding it between his fingers; a smirk perched on his lips. He must have taken it when they shook hands.

 

Yunho scoffs and snatches his ring back. "This is no place for fun and games, kid."

 

Changmin shrugs nonchalantly. 

 

"I'm concerned. If I weren't on your side, you would have never noticed."

 

Yunho crosses his arms, now looking at Changmin challengingly. Honestly, the last thing he needed was another brat in the agency. Kyuhyun was enough and everyone knew that. Changmin was like another Kyuhyun back when he was 16.

 

Yunho chuckles darkly. "Unfortunately, that isn't the case now. Now if you'll excuse me," Yunho says, slowly turning around. 

 

"You're quite something, Special Agent Jung Yunho," Changmin says mockingly. One the inside, Yunho was seething. Who does this kid think he is? Why did he speak informally to him? Why does he think that he's the hottest shit in town? 

 

"Mind your manners, kid. I'm clearly older than you," Yunho spat, looking at the younger man over his shoulder. 

 

Changmin saw this as a challenge. "Kwon wants us to get along. We may be partnered up for the next mission, sunbaenim." Yunho didn't like the way Changmin addresses him. 

 

The elder clenches his jaw. "Cooperation wouldn't be impossible if you would stop acting like a stuck-up brat with a superiority complex."

 

Changmin's eyes darkens. "Don't act as if you know me."

 

Yunho snorts. 

 

He spares one last glance at Changmin before turning away. He could feel the younger's eyes watching his every movement as Yunho makes his way to the elevator.

 

Yunho sighs.

 

He was severely disappointed that he was given a job to baby-sit his partner before saving the world. No, it's more like Changmin was a plant that he needed to take care of. He needed to nurture him and water him.

 

Okay that came off weird. 

 

Yunho was once again back in the main office and still coffee-less. Hyukjae was still glaring at him while Siwon seemed intrigued about the death glares Yunho was receiving. Meanwhile, Sungmin was phoning someone, most likely his wife, judging from the look on his face, and he could hear Kyuhyun cursing from his private room. The kid was probably slacking off again, playing God knows what. 

 

Yunho grumbles at the sight of a neatly stacked paper, innocently sitting on his desk and a sticky note stuck on top.

 

' **Get** **it** **done** **by** **6.** **No** _**excuses."**_

 

Yunho slams his head against his desk.

* * *

Yunho manages to finish all of his work before 6 pm, much to his pleasure. Most of his peers had gone home early since there was no actual work today, as quoted from Kyuhyun. Though the only problem for Yunho was that his phone application had warned him that there was a really bad traffic jam on his usual route home. 

 

Yunho decided to phone his brother.

 

After a few rings, Donghae picks up the phone.

 

"Hyung?"

 

Yunho smiles. "Hey Hae. I hope you don't mind me crashing your place tonight." Yunho vaguely hears Donghae dropping his phone before the younger man hastily picked it back up.

 

"Um, right now?" Donghae sounded flustered. Yunho's smile fell from his face, and turns into suspicion instead.

 

"Uh, yeah? There's a traffic jam on my usual route home and your place is the closest to where I work," Yunho explains. 

 

Donghae was silent for a while, Yunho guesses that he had placed his phone down and the younger man went elsewhere. 

 

He hears the door close from the other line. It wasn't clear, but Yunho was trained to listen to the even the smallest sounds, and Yunho thinks Donghae is acting very suspicious right now. 

 

"Yeah, you can come over, hyung," Donghae says, his tone completely changed, which raises Yunho's suspicions even further. 

 

"Right...I'll be there in 15 minutes," Yunho mutters, ending the call. 

 

All of his thoughts on Helios and Shim Changmin were pushed into the vault of his mind, as long as he was spending time with his step brother, his life as Special Agent Jung Yunho is non-existant.

 

He arrives at Donghae's apartment under 15 minutes and the younger had opened the door for his brother before Yunho could even knock. 

 

"Hyung," Donghae was grinning, "it's been so long."

 

Yunho smiles and ruffles Donghae's hair lightly. The younger snorts and moves out of the way, letting his older brother in. Donghae's apartment wasn't the neatest, but it definitely looked more acceptable than Yunho's living space. Yunho strides over to the couch and flops himself on top of it, exhaling a breath he had been holding the whole day. Well, not literally. 

 

"You look like shit," Donghae comments, observing Yunho's state with an amused look. 

 

Yunho waves him off. "You too, Hae. So, how was the military?" Donghae had completed his military service not long after earning his bachelor's degree. He's contemplating on continuing his studies, but unfortunately, he was quite tight on money. The younger had finished his service two weeks ago, when Yunho had been working in another country and was unable to welcome him back. 

 

"Eh, it was okay. Made some new pals, met some great people...you know the drill." 

 

"Ah."

 

Donghae sits himself next to Yunho. "How was your day? Something wild must've happened that made you go home like this." Donghae didn't know about Yunho's dangerous life. All he knew was that Yunho worked as an accountant for some large company; which was actually true. What he didn't know was that his 'side job' provided Yunho with a fake job in order to lessen the suspicions on him of being a secrent agent. 

 

Yunho groans. "A lotta shit happened. I need something to drink-"

 

"You know I don't drink a lot."

 

"...I need coffee."

 

Donghae rolls his eyes. "Unbelievable. Go make it yourself, you big oaf."

 

Yunho pouted, which honestly freaked Donghae out. "Is this how you treat your hyung? Your hyung who had done nothing but love and support you all this time?"

 

Donghae's eye twitches. 

 

Yunho immediately bolted up and made a beeline towards the kitchen while Donghae continued to stare at him with sharp eyes like an eagle. 

 

"I can't believe you have no sympathy for your poor old brother after he had a terrible day at work," Yunho grumbles as he fumbles with the jar of coffee sachets.

 

Donghae rolls his eyes at his overly dramatic brother. "What happened then? Do entertain me, hyung."

 

Yunho wonders whether he should be truthful to Donghae or not. The younger would be able to understand Yunho's problems since Yunho trusted and felt closest to his step brother more than anyone else. 

 

"Well firstly, I didn't get my morning coffee," Donghae's snort interrupted Yunho, "my co-worker was being an absolute dick," he says, referring to Hyukjae, "and we got a new guy at work."

 

Donghae raises a brow. "Did they do something wrong?"

 

Yunho thought for a moment. Shim Changmin's face emerges from the vault of his mind and the latter's face was on full display within his brain. Changmin didn't do anything wrong technically, but the brat was nothing but a nuisance.

 

"He's a brat," spat Yunho. 

 

Donghae frowns. "He could be a nice guy."

 

Yunho shook his head. "He's being bratty on purpose." He was very convinced Changmin made a bad first impression just to annoy the elder. Hate at first sight.

 

"You probably misunderstood him," Donghae retorts. 

 

"He pulled a small prank on _me_ on his _first_ _day_."

 

Donghae watches Yunho's grip tighten on the cup he was holding. "Working for such a big company has its perks I guess," he commented. Yunho walks back to couch and seats himself next to Donghae. "I'm jealous, hyung. Your workplace seems a lot more eventful than mine," Donghae whines. 

 

'You have no idea,' thought Yunho. 

 

"It's your fault that you work in a library of all places."

 

"The library can be eventful."

 

"Only when you get to kick out obnoxious kids," jokes Yunho. The older man's eyed roam around Donghae's living room, eyes landing on an unfamiliar shirt on the floor rhat didn't seem to be Donghae's size. 

 

"Isn't that shirt a bit big on you?" Yunho enquires, pointing to the discarded shirt on the floor. Donghae's eyes followed Yunho's finger, he saw panic in his eyes, but it seemed to have faded within a second. 

 

"Big shirts are good for pajamas," Donghae replies curtly. 

 

Yunho eyes him strangely. "Right..." Yunho decided not to push the conversation any further and the two brothers spent the rest of the night watching tv and catching up to each other.

 

* * *

 

Changmin's training starts today and Yunho didn't bother knowing how the younger felt about it, but Yunho was definitely not up to it. He was furious that Boa didn't assign him with an experienced partner during Heechul's absence. Even the snarky and cold Kim 'Key' Kibum would've made a better partner than Changmin. 

 

On the other hand, Changmin wasn't that excited about the whole thing either. He's been acquainted with most of his coworkers, yet he still couldnt find a friend in one of them. Though Boa did say that there were more people he'll meet later on. 

 

Right now, he was lounging in the break room, though irritation decorated his features, mostly due to the broken vending machine that swallowed up his money only for nothing to come out. Changmin had kicked the machine in frustration.

 

Boa had instructed him to wait until Yunho had arrived so she could brief the two about the mission. Changmin thought about getting some coffee to start his day, but unfortunately, not everything went his way. 

 

He hears the door open and Changmin looks up to see young man, possibly his age. He had dark circles under his large, sleepy eyes and messy bed hair. His clothes were messy, he had buttoned it up all wrong and his tie was loose. Changmin took his time to observe the young man's disheveled look. 

 

The tired-looking man notices Changmin's gaze on him. He tiredly looks up and blinks once. 

 

"Uh," he starts, "please don't tell me the vending machine is still broken."

 

Changmin snorts. "I would be here enjoying my coffee if it wasn't."

 

The young man curses and walks over to inspect the machine. He pulls out a screwdriver out of nowhere and started to unscrew a bolt. Changmin watches him with an amused look. 

 

"What are you doing?" 

 

"I'm trying to make it self-destruct in order to rid the problem for good," he deadpans. Changmin had a bewildered look on his face until the young man looked over his shoulder with an annoyed look. "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm trying to fix it."

 

"Right...and why didn't you do this the last time?" he asks, recalling what the younger man had said to him earlier. Changmin usually kept conversations short, but not this time. 

 

"Never bothered to come here. I always buy my coffee somewhere else, it just happens that my usual go-to store was closed for the day," he replies. After tinkering with the machine, a smirk appeared on his lips and he screwed the lid back to its place. "There. Problem solved." He turns to eye the tall man who has watched him the whole time. "By the way, I've never seen you before. You new here?"

 

Changmin nods, diverting his gaze elsewhere. "Yes."

 

"Cho Kyuhyun. Your local computer genius and twitch streamer," he drawls out, introducing himself. 

 

That drove a snicker out of the oh-so-cold newbie. 

 

"Shim Changmin,"  the taller replies. 

 

Kyuhyun hums in reply while inserting the amount of money to get himself some coffee. "So, how long have you worked here?"

 

"I already had my basic training last month, but I was sent to this branch only several days ago," came Changmin's answer. 

 

"How old are you?" 

 

"24."

 

"Seems like we both are the youngest around here," Kyuhyun comments. "I've been working here since I was 16."

 

Changmin was still reluctant to continue the conversation, he literally just met him several minutes ago, he had no time to listen to some guy's sob story. But that didn't mean he wasn't the slightest intrigued by it. 

 

"How did you end up working for SM?" he finds himself asking. 

 

Kyuhyun stops what he was doing for a split second before continuing. "I was part of an organization of hacktivists. I was a dumb kid who didn't know what to do with my talent and followed what random older people told me to do. But one day, I got caught red-handed by SM when I tried to access  their database."

 

"So they recruited you?" Changmin enquires.

 

"They wanted arrest me and trial me as an adult. It was Heechul-hyung who made them change their minds," Kyuhyun says, a small smile adorning his face. "Funny enough, he was the one who caught me. He somehow managed to trace my work back to myself."

 

Changmin nods slowly, digesting the information Kyuhyun had told him just now. "Why are you telling me this?"

 

Kyuhyun looks at him incrediculously. "Cause you asked?"

 

"I mean," Changmin starts, "this isn't information you should be going off telling people about."

 

"Two reasons. One, it's something that happened in the past. Nothing I'm ashamed of. Two, you don't seem like the type of guy who'd see this as some sob story you'd sympathize on."

 

"I don't sympathize with people about things like these," Changmin states.

 

Kyuhyun chuckles, handing him a cup of coffee. "You're so stiff." They drank in silence until Changmin's phone went off. It was an alert from Boa, saying that Yunho has finally arrived. Changmin excuses himself and went straight for Boa's office. 

 

* * *

The door opens to reveal the lanky newbie and Yunho immediately gets up from his seat. He watches Changmin stride in without a glance at the elder man in the room, not that Yunho cared about it anyway. Boa looks up from her desk and clears her throat. 

 

Though Yunho's gaze never left Changmin. The older male's eyes were practically glued to Changmin as if he was an exotic creature he's never seen before. Obviously Changmin was bothered by the eyes on him. 

 

"Stop looking at me," Changmin hisses at Yunho. 

 

Yunho felt himself go red, but merely scoffed in return. 

 

Boa ignores their small banter and started briefing them. "Firstly, I'd like to address that Special Agent Park Jungsu and Special Agent Kim Youngwoon's whereabouts have not been confirmed yet, and if this goes on until next week, the mission is officially yours to continue."

 

Yunho wasn't close to either of them, though he did miss their presence in the building. He also missed their interactions with Heechul. The latter seemed quite lonely nowadays. 

 

"But before that, I will brief you on the current situation," Boa pauses, eyes glancing between Yunho and Changmin, "a while ago, there was a company called Hecate who received an anonymous calling card plastered by the front door of their building. Initially, they passed it off as a simple prank. However, their company stocks have been going downhill fast within one week. They received another anonymous calling card via email, warning them to halt their activities within two days or bad things may happen, as I quote."

 

Yunho had heard about this news. The company had went bankrupt due to other reasons as well. 

 

"Within two days, personal information of the CEO's family had been spread all over the web. They outed the CEO's mistreatment towards female workers, which involved verbal abuse and sexual harassment," Boa spat out the last words. "And now, Hecate is nothing but dirt."

 

Changmin raises a brow. "But that would mean Helios is doing the right thing, wouldn't it?"

 

Boa nods. "That I would agree. It's the other things they do that I don't condone."

 

"That would be...?" 

 

"Their morals are on the grey area. They do as they please, which means they only destroy what _they_ think is wrong. Which includes destroying religion-based organizations, hacking into intelligence agencies' database and threatening to expose them. They have claimed that they were doing it for justice," she explains. "They claim to do what the police and we can't accomplish. They want people to know what we hide from them and expose the truth. They want to turn people against us. Not just in South Korea, but the whole world."

 

Changmin scoffs. "That's ridiculous. It's impossible to get the whole world to turn against the authority."

 

Yunho shook his head. "The truth works its ways."

 

Boa nods. "We can't deny that we hide a lot from civilians. There are just things they aren't meant to know. It's how the world works."

 

Yunho nods. "It may sound ridiculous, but I'm worried if they are truly capable of it. But how did the name 'Helios' surfaced?"

 

Boa smiles slightly, "we have Special Agent Cho to thank for that. He's been informed of the situation beforehand and managed to gather intelligence for us with his skills." Changmin smiles slightly at the mention of his new-found friend. 

 

Yunho's eye twitches. "Why weren't the rest of us informed about it as well?"

 

Boa went quiet after that. 

 

"Orignally, only our high ranked agents were informed of it. Agent Cho was an exception due to his skills in hacking."

 

"What about Heechul? His rank is higher than Agent Cho's snd they're both hackers."

 

"You must really doubt Agent Cho's skills, Special Agent Jung," Changmin says smugly. The elder turns to look at him. 

 

"Yeah? What's so amazing about him that differentiates him from Heechul?" challenges Yunho. 

 

"Well for one, he actually fixed the damn vending machine," Changmin retorted, leaving Yunho silenced. 

 

Boa rubs her temples. "Save the banter for later, we have more important things to discuss about." After the two agents' attention went back to her, Boa continues, "there was an online thread where they spoke of an organization of hacktivists on the rising. Agent Cho himself was part of one in the past, he recalled his seniors mentioning a group called Helios, who shared the same objective as them, but on a global scale instead."

 

Changmin now understands why recruiting Kyuhhun could be important for SM. SM mostly deals with cybercrime, and having Kyuhyun on board, who had once been involved with cybercrime-based organizations, was a big advantage for them. 

 

"Now that we have that cleared, it's time to talk about the situation we're currently in," Boa starts, "SM has become one of the organizations threatened to be exposed by Helios. Us higher ups had a meeting on how we should handle the situation, so we sent Agent Park and Agent Kim on the mission. We planned to send in Sungmin if things get physical. The mission has been classified as a top secret mission that only several agents have access to. Other agencies have not regarded the situation, believing that Kyuhyun had made up the whole thing about Helios. Something about not wanting to trust a former criminal."

 

Now that made Changmin fucking pissed. 

 

"So technically, Helios doesn't exist in the eyes of public. Ironic, isn't it? Helios is the personification of the _sun_ , yet they appear invisible to us. We've received a calling card not long ago, though they would only make a move until other organizations acknowledge them. Agent Park and Agent Kim were sent to ivestigate Helios and the people involved. We were so close. We even had a name. Agent Park and Agent Kim were sent to find him, yet they failed to do so and disappeared. The man's name also disappeared from the database."

 

"How's that possible?" enquires Yunho. 

 

"We aren't sure yet. But his name was Kim Jongwoon. Kyuhyun managed to track his location when he tried to hack into our database," Boa explains, "now onto the main point. We want you both to find  Kim Jongwoon and bring him back to us for interrogation."

 

Changmin frowns.  "Didn't you say he disappeared? He could be dead for all we know."

 

" _Could_ be dead. If we assume that Agent Park and Agent Kim are held as prisoners, there's a chance that they never had reached Kim Jongwoon in the first place,"came Boa's reply. 

 

There were millions of possibilities on what might've happened to Leeteuk, Kangin, or even Jongwoon, but Yunho decided not to push it any further. 

 

"But if we could try and trace Jongwoon's whereabouts, it might also lead us to Agent Park and Agent Kim's last location," states Yunho. 

 

"That's possible, but it isn't our main goal," was Boa's reply, "now Kim Jongwoon is a dangerous man. Not only is he suspected to be a member of Helios, but he's also part of a mafia."

 

"Just our luck," Changmin drawls.

 

"Since Agent Shim's only been through our basic training, we highly suggest that he needs advanced training for this mission. This is where you come in, Agent Jung."

 

Yunho inwardly curses. "Isn't that Sungmin's job?"

 

"Sungmin has his own mission, Agent Jung," answers Boa, a smug look adorning her face. "Don't you want to be recognized as a senior agent as well, Agent Jung? Then this is your first step."

 

"You mean baby sitting?"

 

Changmin grinds his teeth. "I'm still here, if you must know."

 

Boa chuckles lightly. "Right. Now both of you hurry to the training room. Yunho, train him like you were trained. No holding back."

 

Now Yunho was smirking. 

 

And Changmin had a terrible feeling about it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LEAVING KUDOS AND REVIEWS, im sorry i couldnt reply to all, school has been making me very very busy:(


	4. Training

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright i updated thru my phone and I'll edit the story later on. 
> 
> I suck with titles sksklsk

"Hyukjae!"

Donghae kept his eyes on his boyfriend when the elder appeared startled by the younger man's voice.

"You were spacing out," says Donghae, "I was asking if you have work today. Usually by the time I get here, you're already dressed up and ready to go."

Hyukjae was tired. No, he was exhausted. And it was all Donghae's fault.

Hyukjae sighs loudly. "I think I'm taking a sick day."

Donghae's eyes widen. "But why?"

Hyukjae snorts. "Well who was the one to kick me out late at night? The traffic wasn't exactly friendly that night," answers Hyukjae, recalling the previous night where he spent hours stuck in traffic after Donghae had kicked him out for no apparent reason.

Donghae frowns. "It wasn't that late. Besides, I had a good reason to."

"And what would that be?" Hyukjae drawls.

Donghae sits next to his boyfriend on the couch. "My brother doesn't know I'm gay."

Hyukjae raises a brow. "You have a brother?"

Donghae nods. "Yeah. He stayed the night at my place."

"Couldn't you introduce me as your friend or something?" Hyukjae whines, still bitter about Donghae kicking him out to the late night traffic jam. He arrived back home by midnight and Hyukjae didn't even care that he slept in his work clothes on the couch.

Other than that, it would be nice to meet Donghae's family for once.

Donghae bites his lower lip. "Then we wouldn't get to-"

"Yeah, yeah I get it," Hyukjae cuts in. "Wait, if you're here, then your brother's...?"

"He went to work early," came Donghae's reply.

Hyukjae went to rub his forehead. "And you couldn't explain all this to me last night?"

"I panicked!"

"Why are you so afraid of what your brother would think of us?" Hyukjae asks his boyfriend, sounding annoyed. His family was more than okay with Hyukjae's relationship with Donghae, even his coworkers were pretty supportive about it. Even if Donghae's brother disapproves of their relationship, Hyukjae wouldn't turn his back on Donghae.

Donghae pauses and his eyes suddenly appeared dark. Hyukjae quietly observes his boyfriend's change of demeanor.

"It's nothing," he says in a monotonous voice.

Hyukjae smiles sadly. Seems like Donghae isn't fond of the topic of the conversation. Hyukjae snakes an arm around his waist and pulls the shorter man closer to him. Donghae sighs and leans his head against his boyfriend's shoulder.

Hyukjae's hand went up to thread his fingers through Donghae's dark brown hair. He messes up his hair a bit before leaning in to kiss his temple. The elder presses his face against Donghae's hair.

"'M sorry for earlier," he mumbles.

Donghae chuckles. "You apologize for everything," he playfully scolds. "Wasn't even something for me to be mad about." Donghae felt his boyfriend relax against him and the younger reaches up to place a chaste kiss against his lips.

Suddenly, Hyukjae's phone went off, ringtone blaring out, cutting Hyukjae and Donghae's moment.

Donghae eyes his phone before looking up to Hyukjae, a dark and unimpressed look on his face.

"Nickelback? Really?"

Hyukjae was sure a certain _someone_ was responsible for changing his ringtone.

'Damn you, Cho Kyuhyun," curses Hyukjae before taking the call.

 

* * *

 

Yunho and Changmin left the office, with the younger man looking quite somber. Yunho, on the other hand, looked ecstatic. He enthusiasticly marches out of the room with Changmin sluggishly following behind.

Changmin hated the look on Yunho's face.

"What are you so happy for?" Changmin questions with an exasperated tone.

"I've been wanting to do this ever since I started working here," replies Yunho gleefully, sounding like a kid on Christmas morning. Changmin rolls his eyes, not liking the tone of his voice.

Changmin pushes past Yunho, brushing against his shoulder. "Whatever. Let's just get it over with, Jung."

"Alright. Then go get changed," Yunho catches up to Changmin's pace and slaps his back a bit too hard.

"What."

Yunho turns to face him. "Are you really going to train in a suit?"

Changmin looks down to see his attire. "Right."

After Yunho got changed into a white shirt and a pair of shorts, he awaits for the younger to finish. Changmin was taking an awful long time in the changing room.

"Shim, you might want to hurry it up."

Yunho heard a few shuffles and thuds inside of the room and Changmin muttering incoherent words. Changmin finally steps out in the same attire but shorts were...well...short.

Yunho had a nice view of Changmin's mile long legs and fuck, he has really nice legs. Yunho would never admit it, but he has a thing for nice, long legs. Nice legs like Changmin's. Unfortunately, his ass was non-existant despite his nice legs and hips.

Changmin notices Yunho's gaze on the lower part of his body and assumed the worst.

"Stop staring, you creep, " Changmin hisses. Yunho immediately averted his gaze and pretended as if he never looked at Changmin's legs at all.

"I wasn't staring. What's there to look at anyway?"

Changmin's eye twitches, but he decided to leave the conversation there. "Let's just get it done with, old man."

'Old!?'

Yunho's smile falters and his face shifted into an annoyed look. "Yah! I'm not even 30, you brat!"

Changmin rolls his eyes and ignores the elder. "Just lead the way so we can finish faster, Agent Jung." It was unbelievable. Yunho had never met a junior this rude to him. Even Kyuhyun was on a tolerable level. Yunho wonders what went through the director's mind when recruiting him. Perhaps Heechul was involved in recruiting him, he's always been fond of feisty people.

Yunho scowls and went to walk in front of Changmin. There goes his good mood. Though he'd definitely get him back soon.

The two earned looks from the staff in the buulding. Sungmin watches them from his desk and leans his head against his hand, a knowing smile perched upon his lips.

"Brings back memories huh, Yunho?" Sungmin says. Yunho turns to face his senior and flashes a smile.

"Sure does, hyung."

Yunho was reminded of his days as a newbie. Sungmin had been assigned to train and look after him on his first year. Sungmin had been an absolutely amazing mentor to Yunho, because of their mutual respect and admiration, it wasn't your usual senior-junior relationship. Sungmin saw Yunho as an equal, the only difference being the amount of time they've worked for SM, and of course, their skills in fighting. Sungmin isn't dubbed the best fighter for nothing.

"Be sure to execute the 'special training' well, Yunho," Sungmin says, "I don't want you embarrassing me, you're my favorite dongsaeng, you know that?"

Yunho gave him a thumbs up. "Don't worry about it, hyung."

Sungmin chuckles. "Well then. Give 'em hell, Yunho," he turns to face Changmin, "and good luck to you, kid. With the way I trained Yunho, I expect him to do his worst on you." With that, Sungmin turns his back on them and Changmin doesn't miss the smirk plastered on his face.

Changmin narrows his eyes while Yunho signals Changmin to follow him.

Soon, Changmin finds himself outside of the building.

The younger man looks around. "So...what are we doing here?"

Yunho places both hands on his hips. "Did they test your stamina when during the recruitment process?"

Changmin nods. They made Changmin run 5 full laps around the building, it was tiring, though it wasn't anything Changmin couldn't do.

"They made me run laps around the building."

"Good, that's exactly what you're going to do today," starts Yunho, "but..."

"But?"

Yunho looks around. "It's pretty isolated here, right? We have a pretty view of the nature from this place..." He turns to face the younger who already looks bored. "Are you cold?"

Changmin shrugs. "A bit. I mean, if I weren't wearing shorts in this weather, I'd answer otherwise."

"Well, you'll have to suck it up," Yunho walks closer to Changmin, eyes glued to his, and he could see the younger man stare down to him with a challenged look. "The road around this area is your track and you're running non stop."

Changmin's jaw slightly drops. "What the fuck do you think I am? A marathon runner?!"

Yunho narrows his eyes. "Watch your language, Shim," he spoke firmly.

The younger man grits his teeth. "Do you even know how wide the area is?"

Yunho stepped closer to Changmin, looking quite pissed. "Did you hear me complaining about it when I was told to? Did you see Sungmin-hyung complain about it as well? Boa? No, you didn't. All three of us went through the same thing, you brat."

Changmin scoffs and backs away from Yunho. He turns around and starts to stretch his long limbs, facing away the elder. Yunho smiles victoriously in finally putting the brat in his place.

"Be sure to warm up well," Yunho comments, Changmin still facing away from him, "I don't want you hurting yourself." As soon as those words left Yunho's mouth, Changmin stiffens.

So the old man does care.

Changmin, being the petty man he is, pretended not to care.

Afterwards, Yunho escorts Changmin outside of the gates. The security watches them with amusement, knowing about the ritual themselves. Sungmin's Three Deadly Trials, they call it.

Changmin looks at Yunho, who started warming up as soon as they stood by the road. "What are you doing?"

Yunho stops stretching and looks up to Changmin. "Warming up?"

"For?"

Yunho chuckles. "You think you're running by yourself? I'm not that cruel, Shim, none of us are. In fact, someone obviously needs to keep an eye out on you."

The younger scoffs, but secretly appreciating Yunho showing his caring side towards him, who's done nothing but be disrespectful towards the elder. Though it doesn't mean that Changmin liked him.

"Sungmin-sunbaenim did the same back then?"

"Nah, he rode his Bugatti and yelled at me while I was practically dying." Changmin snickers at the thought of a sweet man like Sungmin torture his juniors.

"Why aren't you doing that as well?"

Yunho snorts. "Well for one, I'm a nice guy," Yunho bends over to tie his shoelaces, "and second, I don't own a Bugatti."

Changmin laughs for the first time. A genuine laugh, for once, and not the mocking or derogatory laugh he usually does. It was as if what happened five minutes ago never happened at all, and Yunho was astonished.

"Seems like the cold creature is capable of smiling," teases Yunho. Changmin's laugh falter in a split second, his usual annoyed frown returning.

"Shut up."

"Alright then. Let's begin, Shim."

Without a warning, Yunho took off like a speeding bullet, something Changmin would never expect from Yunho.

"Hey!"

Changmin hurries after him, his long legs giving him an advantage to catch up to Yunho in a short amount of time.

Within a minute, he manages to run the same pace Yunho. The elder had not broken a single sweat, meanwhile, Chang appears to be freezing to death instead.

Yunho glances over to Changmin. "For a guy who's lived in South Korea all his life, you don't seem to be that fond of the cold."

Changmin glares at him. "You read my profile?"

Yunho rolls his eyes. "Why did you think I arrived so late today?" Changmin's eyes widen and a sneer is etched upon his lips, "also, you didn't answer my question."

"Well it's not like I come out of my house during the winter dressed like this."

They ran in silence. Yunho watches Changmin in amusement when the younger decided to pick up his pace and run ahead.

Unfortunately, it was a terrible idea.

Changmin was quickly reduced into a sweaty mess and his body started to shake badly. He didn't know how far he was into the track, but he doubted that he was anywhere near being finished. Sweating in the cold was the worst feeling, but Changmin could understand why he needs to get used to it. He's a field agent and no matter what condition thr weather was on, he needs to execute his missions perfectly.

He sees Yunho slow down his pace. The elder glances at him with a worried look. Changmin has a hard time getting used to Yunho's duality.

"You good, kid?"

Changmin weakly nods, still trying to at least jog. "Stop calling me a kid," which was equivalent to Changmin expressing his gratitude towards Yunho for caring.

Yunho shook his head. "I can't believe you're losing to an old man like me. I would be embarrassed."

Yunho's challenge lit the fire inside of Changmin that has been dim for far too long.

"I'm not losing to anyone!" Changmin's soreness fades away within a second and he manages to at least keep up with Yunho's pace, he couldn't help not throwing a glare at Yunho's direction.

Yunho snorts at the sight of Changmin trying so hard to keep up with him. The younger was tiring himself and not making much progress. Yunho wanted to let him learn the lesson himself, but he had a somewhat kind heart and he wouldn't let his junior die in the middle of the road.

"Shim!" Yunho calls out, "you need to slow down. You're tiring yourself, you might collapse at this pace."

Changmin narrows his eyes, as if he was giving Yunho's advice a second thought.

"What, afraid that you'll be the one eating my dust?"

Yunho's lips twitches and shifts into a forced smile. "I'm just saying because I don't want to work with a crippled partner for a mission as important as this," Yunho empathizes the last word.

Changmin grew irritated. For one minute, Yunho was acting as if he's in control over him and the next moment, the guy pretends to care about his well-being. Who the hell did he think he is and what the hell does he think he's doing? Is he mocking him? Changmin was too blinded by anger to think rationally. "Did you hear that?"

Yunho shot him a confused look.

"Hear what?"

Changmin glowers at him.

"I think you're cracking a few bones there, old man."

Something within Yunho snaps and he saw red.

Changmin watches Yunho's demeanor shift into something he's never seen before and he took it a signal to start running for real.

The two ran without rest, not caring if they were supposed to be conserving energy and the whole training session completely forgotten. Both Yunho and Changmin ended up trying to best each other while throwing childish remarks to the other. At some point, Yunho felt himself growing tired and started poking fun at Changmin, hoping the other would stop running in order to protect his dignity. He would not fall before the younger does.

"Hey kid," Yunho says between pants, "your shoelaces are untied."

"No they aren't."

"Y-eah they are."

"Liar, you fucking stuttered." and at that moment, Changmin falls over.

And Yunho wheezes.

But unfortunately, he miscalculates the length of Changmin's legs and trips on his shoes, falling on top of him. Changmin wheezes at the heavy weight on top of him suffocating him to death.

Yunho stayed like that for a while, unable to move with Changmin breathing heavily underneath him. He realizes that Changmin had fallen on his stomach and Yunho was on top of him, meaning - 'oh god' - Changmin's back was brushing against his-

"Get the fuck off me!" yells a red faced Changmin.

Yunho shifts above him, accidentally brushing his legs against Changmin's bare thighs. The action causes Changmin to grow even more flustered, the younger groans out loud and slightly turns around to roughly push Yunho away which caused the elder to roll onto his back next to him.

Changmin clenches his jaw upon seeing Yunho looking quite dazed and distracted. The younger man gets on his feet, ties his shoelaces, and without another word, he starts to jog away from the elder man.

Yunho continues to stare up to the sky.

He slowly starts to get up, his legs and arms slightly shaking. Yunho starts to follow Changmin, his mind clouded with thoughts. Thoughts he'd rather not share with anyone, ever.

Surprisingly, Yunho recovers from his flustered state quite fast. He continues to provoke Changmin for the rest of the track, to which the younger would usually ignore or give occasional retorts.

At last, they've finally reach back to the starting point. To say that Yunho and Changmin were exhausted was an understatement. Changmin, dignity be damned, was leaning against Yunho for support and his breath sounded ragged. While Yunho was practically shaking on every step he took. The two were greeted by a sick-looking Hyukjae who had just arrived not long ago.

Hyukjae was clad in thick clothing, a bit too thick despite the weather. He looks like he's about to venture through a snowstorm. The only differences being his head, he's only wearkng a beanie on top of it, and his pants, as he's still wearing his usual pants that goes with his usual suit.

Hyukjae whistles in amusment at the sight of Yunho and Changmin.

Hyukjae snorts when Yunho glances up to him. "Seems like you two had a great time."

Yunho rolls his eyes and winces when he felt Changmin lean against him even more. "The best," he drawls. Yunho eyes Hyukjae's clothes, "what happened to you?"

Hyukjae looks down then back up to Yunho. "Wanted to call in for a sick day, but big boss wanted my ass here asap."

"That sucks."

"Yeah."

"Could you carry us both into the building."

"What."

"Hyukjae I can't move," his eyes shifts over to Changmin, "and I'm pretty sure he's out cold."

Hyukjae's jaw drops.

"Are you kidding me!? I'll break my arms!"

Yunho rolls his eyes. "Dammit, Hyuk, fucking hurry with it before I collapse-"

"Well- why not get Sungmin-hyung to-"

-right now." As if on cue, Yunho fell onto his knees bring Changmin down with him as well. Before he knew it, Yunho's vision blurs and his world went black. He vaguely recalls Hyukjae cursing out loud about breaking his arms.

* * *

Changmin wakes up in an unfamiliar room.

His legs felt sore, but he was no longer feeling cold. He finds himself dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a grey sweatshirt. He recognizes the room as the polyclinic and he's resting in one of the rooms right now.

Though only one question crosses his mind.

What the hell happened?

All he remembers was the moment where he and Yunho competed through turning because of a childish argument. Afterwards, Changmin remembers growing exhausted and leaned against his senior as they reached back to the starting point.

He rolls his sweatpants up to see bruises and scabs on his knees, probably when he fell over after stepping on his own shoelaces and Yunho had to topple over him.

However, Yunho was nowhere seen in the small room.

The door suddenly opens, revealing a lady in a white coat and a small smile perched upon her lips. She had a clipboard in her arms.

"Agent Shim?"

Changmin nods slowly.

"I'm Choi Sooyoung," she introduces herself, "and I'm also the doctor here."

Choi Sooyoung, a senior agent and a former med student. Though Changmin vaguely remembers that she was supposed to be in Japan.

Changmin tilts his head, "Agent Choi? If you don't mind me asking, aren't you supposed to be in Japan with Agent Jung?"

Sooyoung laughs, "it's Dr. Choi right now, Agent Shim." Changmin didn't seem impressed with that, but Sooyoung chose to ignore his reaction. "You mean Krystal?" Changmin nods, he would never refer to the _other_ Jung with that much respect. "I was in Osaka 24 hours ago, but the director wanted us back in Seoul as soon as possible. I got here around midnight."

Changmin raises a brow. "For no apparent reason?"

Sooyoung shakes her head. "No. We're going to have an important meeting, apparently. He seemed really pressed about the matter."

Changmin wonders if the director is finally going to inform the rest of the organization about Helios and perhaps Kangin and Leeteuk's disappearance. It was about time, anyway.

"I see."

Sooyoung walks closer towards Changmin. "Do you feel cold? Do your knees hurt if you touch them? Do you need anything else?" Sooyoung bombards him.

Changmin shook his head. "I hope it isn't much, but I really need something hot to drink right now. And no, they don't hurt anymore."

Sooyoung nods and wrote some things down on her clipboard. She turns around and cups her hand around her mouth.

"Choi Minho! Make some hot tea, please!"

Minho is the organization's nurse. He attended the same med school as Sooyoung and he quickly became her favorite junior. But in the end, Sooyoung does all the medical-related work and Minho just lounges in the clinic and watch dramas.

Changmin vaguely hears a tired voice shouting something incoherent in reply. With that, Sooyoung turns around and flashes another friendly smile. "Get some more rest while Minho makes your tea."

Changmin nods, mutteeing a small thanks.

"Didn't Agent Choi and Agent Liu have a mission together in Thailand?" Changmin wonders.

Sooyoung crosses her arms. "Like I said, Director Lee was insistent."

"What about their mission?"

"Agents from the Thai branch has it covered, don't worry too much," Sooyoung explains. After excusing herself, Sooyoung steps out of the room.

'We have a branch in Thailand?' was Changmin's thought as the elder leaves the room. Some time later, a young man walks into the room, holding a cup and plate in his hands. He looks around the room before his eyes land on Changmin.

"Where's Sooyoung?" Minho and Sooyoung are probably super close, Changmin thinks.

"She left a minute ago."

"Ah," he catches the uncertain look plastered across Changmin's face. "Right. I'm Minho. Choi Minho. I'm in the same division as you are, but I suppose I'm a nurse as well."

"Shim Changmin. I'm new."

Minho nods. "You're quite the talk in this building, Agent Shim." He walks towards Changmin and hands him the cup.

Changmin grunts, trying to sit up straighter. "I'm aware of that."

"Not a lot of people can anger Agent Jung, y'know."

Changmin raises a brow. "Krystal?"

Minho rolls his eyes. "You damn well know who I'm talking about, Shim."

Changmin snorts. "Obviously," he absentmindedly twirls the teaspoon in his hand, "how did everyone find out?"

"Agent Jung woke up a lot sooner than you did," was Minho's answer, "he told Sooyoung and I what happened."

Changmin felt himself go red, memories of what happened came back to him in the most explicit details.

"Don't worry, he didn't go that deep about it," Minho reassures.

"What?"

"I mean," Minho sputters out, "you don't seem comfortable talking about it."

Changmin sighs in relief. He leans down to sip his drink. Minho smiles and turns around, heading to the door.

"I'm going to tend to Yunho again," Minho announces, "call me if you need me. Poor Sooyoung is drained from a midnight flight and tending you three."

Changmin looks up. "Three?"

"Hyukjae injured himself carrying the both of you into the building."

Changmin slightly smirks. "Did he break his arms or something?" What was Hyukjae thinking to carry two men twice his size with the skinny body of his? Sure he had some muscle in him, but let's be real.

Minho shook his head. "He tripped on his own feet and the two of you fell on top of him."

Changmin winces.

"He really didn't want to leave you both out in the cold in shorts," Minho says, sounding amused.

"How thoughtful."

But truthfully, Changmin was grateful for Hyukjae.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Btw.... How do you all feel abt the situation with you-know-who? Personally im rlly :/


	5. Conflict

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get more complicated...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hellooo, sorry for the late update, I've been really stressed and filled with anxiety for the last few days:(
> 
> On the bright side, I'm going to watch SS7 in Singapore! :D Are any of you going as well? 
> 
> Once again, thank you for being patient and reading my fic, it means a lot :") 

"I want Shim Changmin out of the operation!" was what Yunho first yelled the moment Boa came to visit him in the infirmary room. She notices Sooyoung visibly flinch at the tone of Yunho's voice. Boa strode over to the only man in the room and smacked the back of his head. "What the hell!" Yunho had protested. He was visibly seething.

 

Boa narrows her eyes. "You need to keep your voice down. There are people resting."

 

Yunho shook his head. "No. I don't care if I'm disturbing that brat's rest. He deserves it."

 

Boa crosses her arms; her foot could be heard tapping against the floor. "I'm sure Hyukjae wouldn't appreciate being interrupted from his beauty sleep." With that, Yunho looks up to Boa, eyes filled with concern.

 

"Hyukjae's awake, actually," though Sooyoung's words were ignored by the other two in the room.

 

"What happened to Hyukjae?"

 

"He tripped over his feet and tumbled down the floor with you two on top of him," explains Boa with an displeased tone.

 

"Actually, he just fell on the floor. On his face. No tumbling was involved," Sooyoung helpfully adds.

 

Yunho stares at the two women before him in disbelief before rubbing his forehead with his fingers. "Oh god...poor Hyukjae...did we break anything?" Yunho knew that Hyukjae had some muscle in him and he wasn't that frail, but compared to the ever so tall and muscly Shim Changmin and the physically fit Yunho, Hyukjae was an anchovy to them.

 

"Fortunately, nothing was broken. Just some bruises here and there...but he'll live. He isn't Special Agent Lee Hyukjae for nothing," Boa replies, "speaking of which, how was training with Agent Shim?"

 

Yunho grimaces. "I think Sungmin-hyung should take over my place instead. I don't think I can last another day with that brat. Either you take him or me out of the team. Or even better, kick him out."

 

"You're being very childish, Yunho."

 

"I don't care. I want him out. Why the hell was he recruited in the first place?" It was rare for Yunho to lose his cool. This was the first time Sooyoung saw Yunho like this, but it wasn't the first time for Boa and it wouldn't be the last either. He was simply being childish and bratty that even Heechul would roll his eyes at.

 

"He had exceptional skills."

 

"Exceptional skills in what? Being a nuisance? He isn't fit for this job. He's a child trapped in a man's body."

 

"Are you aware that Kyuhyun is the same age as he is? In fact, remember when Kyuhyun first joined us? Wasn't he a nuisance as well? He was 16," retorts Boa.

 

"Kyuhyun was useful to the team. He helped track down those small hacker organizations. Shim has been nothing but a burden to the whole team," Yunho spat out.

 

"You sound like a little boy being partnered with the person you hate - but secretly like - for a science project. All of this is just amusing to me," Boa drawls. Sooyoung quietly giggles next to her while looking over her clipboard.

 

"Except I don't like him," came Yunho's answer, "as a matter of fact, I would rather wait for Heechul to come back then I'll continue Jungsoo-hyung's mission." The mission was to retrieve intel on Helios. It wasn't like he's supposed to take down the whole organization or anything.

 

"Heechul's not going to be back after his honeymoon. I'm pretty sure it's going to happen after his wedding, which is in months."

 

"Well that's just great."

 

The door opens abruptly and the three pair of eyes immediately darted over to the figure by the door.

 

Minho slowly eyes his surroundings. "Is it a bad time?" Minho asks sheepishly.

 

Boa sighs. "I need to head to the conference room now. Get well soon, Yunho." Boa eyes her longtime friend before heading out of the room, brushing past Minho.

 

"No, come in, Nurse Choi," Sooyoung replies. "How's Agent Shim's condition?"

 

Minho smiles. "He's alright. He's talking a lot more now. He should be able to go home after some final checkups."

 

Yunho raises a brow. "Go home? It's still morning..."

 

Minho shook his head. "Afraid not, Agent Jung. It's almost 4 PM now."

 

Had Yunho been out for that long? Yunho's eyes shot wide open in realization.

 

"What about the important meeting?" Yunho enquires.

 

Minho smiles sheepishly in return. "I'm afraid you won't be able to attend the meeting, Yunho. You'll need to rest a bit more, attending the meeting would only worsen your- well, well-being."

 

That didn't make sense, but Yunho nods.

 

"What about Changmin and Hyukjae?"

 

"Agent Shim had just woken up earlier and doesn't seem to be in a good condition either, so he's sitting out this time. While Hyukjae was quite insistent about attending..."

 

Yunho raises a brow.

 

"He's forcing himself to attend the meeting. Something about not wanting to regret getting out of the house with his condition like that and leaving his boyfriend alone for the day," Minho explains. It was a known fact that Lee Hyukjae spoils his boyfriend a lot. They didn't even need to know who he was, but he's definitely something. "I mean, I do think he should be in bed, but he's a strong headed man."

 

Yunho sighs audibly. "Why did they push the meeting until 4 PM anyways?"

 

Sooyoung frowns. "The director was running late from a schedule all the way in Busan."

 

"That's unfortunate..." commented Yunho.

 

 Minho looked at the clock. "We should be going now," he says to Sooyoung, who nodded in return, "if you need anything, you can call my assistant, Kyungsoo. Though I must warn you that he has a bit of a short temper, so do be patient with him." Sooyoung giggles at that.

 

Yunho groans.

 

* * *

 

"Agent Cho? May I come in?"

 

Kyuhyun's eyes left the monitor for a second. He was met with a pair of sharp-looking eyes that belonged to Kim Heechul.

 

Kyuhyun chuckles. "No need to be so formal, Heechul. Especially to your junior." That earned a smack to the back of Kyuhyun's head.

 

"How many times do I have to tell you to respect your seniors, brat? You're truly something," grumbles Heechul. The older agent made his way into the room - known as Kyuhyun's (Not-so) Secret Lair - and sat himself on one of the soft couches located in the back of the room. Kyuhyun's gaze kept shifting between Heechul and his monitor.

 

"Any good reason why you're here?" asks Kyuhyun, "are you finally introducing us to this poor, poor person who's marrying you or are you here to apologize to both Agent Kwon and Agent Jung?"

 

Heechul rolls his eyes. "First of all, at least _someone_ wants to marry me," he points an accusing finger towards the younger, "second, I will apologize to them. Just not this time around," Kyuhyun rolls his eyes at that, "third, you're an even bigger dick than you were before."

 

"Glad to know that my health is being well monitored," Kyuhyun replies without looking up from the monitor. "Now please tell me why you're here so I can kick you out and get back to work."

 

"Anyone can tell you love me too much to do that."

 

Kyuhyun snorts. "You can totally feel the love in the air. Just don't let your fiancé find out."

 

Heechul chooses to ignore Kyuhyun's remarks.

 

"Does anyone know you're here?" inquires Kyuhyun. Heechul shook his head.

 

"Nah. I slipped in without anyone noticing." Heechul, having the same hacking skills as Kyuhyun, obviously had an easy time sneaking in through the security. However, Kyuhyun's true skills were still beyond Heechul's knowledge. "Have you...tracked Jungsoo and Youngwoon?"

 

Kyuhyun pauses for a moment.

 

"No."

 

It wasn't because Kyuhyun couldn’t; it was more of the fact that Helios is watching their every move.

 

Heechul sighs.

 

There was a pregnant pause before Heechul spoke again.

 

"It's really different here without them. They take care of the rest of us like parents towards their kids, with them being absent, I feel like I'm supposed to take care of a lot of you. Especially with our newest addition to this family," Heechul says, referring to Changmin. Heechul sees Kyuhyun nod in agreement, eyes still glued to the monitor, however. "Not just Jungsoo and Youngwoon, but every one of us have affected our dynamics. All Hyukjae and Siwon do now is get into childish banters," Heechul continues, "Siwon is trying too hard to get some with our fellow agents that he never actually gets any in the end, and Hyukjae takes a bit too many day offs as well, which reminds me, I'll need to discipline him later." Kyuhyun shudders at the last sentence.

 

"Sungmin-hyung isn't around that much anymore either," adds Kyuhyun, "the director keeps sending him to do 'top secret' missions, and from what I've seen before in my attempts on prying, they're not exactly looked up to in public's eye." It was no secret that Sungmin does the dirty work for the agency. Though unofficially written anywhere, it was an unspoken rule that an agent mustn't speak about it with their juniors. Krystal was another agent who's supposedly doing the dirty work as well, though it had only been a rumor. "Did you see Key and Minho the other day? There's a reason why they work in different floors," Heechul chuckles at that, knowing that it's true, "the only sane one around here is Amber and that's saying something."

 

Heechul shook his head. "I sorta miss our early days."

 

Kyuhyun silently agrees; memories of many former members smiling down to him flashes in his head, which brought a sad smile upon Kyuhyun's lips. Most of them had decided to leave the agency for many reasons, while some were lost in the field. Kyuhyun doesn't hate any of the new agents, but he misses the days where it was just him, Jungsoo, Heechul, Youngwoon, Sungmin, Hyukjae, Siwon, Yunho, Boa, Sooyoung, Amber...and many others who was nothing more than a bittersweet memory.

 

"This is because of Changmin, isn't it?" Kyuhyun suddenly says.

 

Heechul looks up.

 

"We haven't had a new member in our department for 4 years," notes Kyuhyun, "having Changmin on board changes a lot."

 

"He's only been here for a few days," Heechul pointed out, "I doubt it changed that quick."

 

"Yunho-hyung's anger issues has risen once more," Kyuhyun droned, "I saw grey strands on Boa's hair a lot more recently...and most importantly, you aren't Yunho's partner anymore."

 

"That was before I knew about Changmin. The kid didn't change anything around here-"

 

"Yet," emphasizes Kyuhyun, "give it time."

 

Heechul snorts. "You've met him?"

 

Kyuhyun nods. "Yeah, earlier today. He seems like a type of person I'd like."

 

Heechul whistles. "Well slow down, big boy, there's a chance he isn't looking for anyone right now."

 

Kyuhyun narrows his eyes. "...Anyway, he's the same age as I was...sorta reminded me of myself when I first got here too."

 

"So you're implying that he has some sort of terrible background like you did?" Heechul enquires. Kyuhyun raises both of his hands.

 

"You said that, not me."

 

"I haven't met him personally, but I'm guessing I should." Heechul was in fact one of the first people to meet Changmin. Though they had no time for introductions since the situation itself wasn't fit for good first impressions. Afterwards, Heechul never actually saw the kid again during his basic training.

 

Kyuhyun finally turns to meet his eyes. "You'd have to apologize to both Agent Kwon and Agent Jung if you want to see him. If you do that, Changmin will be moved into a different division while you retake your position as Yunho's partner for this mission."

 

Heechul raises a brow. "Where are you going with this?"

 

Kyuhyun smiles. A smile that even Heechul finds creepy. "I don't know about you, but I'd like to watch until the end of the show."

 

Realization hit Heechul, causing the latter to laugh.

 

"Cho Kyuhyun, you evil, evil man."

 

* * *

 

"Have they made a move yet?" a voice wonders aloud.

 

A man, who was seated on an office chair, shook his head.

 

"They've just informed the situation to the rest of the department," he replies, "their first move would be in a month. But you know how slow they can be." The other person in the room laughs, though the older man remained unfazed. "I want you to find and inform me on the identities of the agents taking on Park Jungsoo and Kim Youngwoon's mission."

 

The younger leaves the room without another word.

 

The older remains on his seat.

 

He didn't tell the younger man that he had already known about Jung Yunho and Shim Changmin.

 

* * *

 

"Hyukjae, you look awful," comments Kyuhyun. The older man sniffles and rolls his eyes at the younger man who sat himself next to Hyukjae. The sick man grumbled at the sight of Siwon happily texting someone on his phone right next to him. Hyukjae then eyes the people in the room, next to Kyuhyun was Choi Minho, the nurse and part-time field agent, and next to him was Choi Sooyoung, the doctor. Besides Siwon was Amber Liu, a junior agent and sometimes the team's 'psychologist' (not really, they just vent to her and she would listen very well), and besides her was the ever so mysterious and rumored ex- _hitwoman_ , Krystal Jung. Across from them was Kwon Boa, their supervisor, and next to her was one of their newest addition to team before Changmin, Kim Kibum, known as Key, whose purpose in the team is still a mystery for Hyukjae, and on the other side of Boa was Sungmin, who looked like he was about to fall asleep.

 

'Two overgrown streetlamps fell on top of me,' Hyukjae had wanted to say.

 

"I have a cold."

 

Kyuhyun snickers.

 

"He's just mad he couldn't spend his time with his boyfriend," Siwon helpfully adds. Hyukjae glares at Siwon, not liking it whenever the younger man mentions his boyfriend.

 

"Chill, Hyukjae, I don't think he'd steal your boyfriend anyway. Someone like your boyfriend would be impossible to steal away knowing that he's been oh-so loyal to someone like _you_ ," Kyuhyun drawls.

 

Hyukjae smacks the back of Kyuhyun's head. "Watch it, brat. At least someone wants to date me."

 

Kyuhyun rolls his eyes. "I have heaps of people waiting in line, for your information, I just don't have the time to date since I'm a busy man."

 

Minho, who was next to Kyuhyun, snorts at that.

 

"Kyu's bluffing," Minho announced, as if it was something no one knew about, "he was so desperate for a date last year to a gala that he even turned to me-" this time, it was Minho who received a smack to the back of his head.

 

Sooyoung looks at the male agents with an annoyed look. "The director could be here anytime and here you are, acting like kids."

 

Minho turns to face Sooyoung. "Oh shush, noona, we're just messing around."

 

"Like how you did during your training?" Amber helpfully adds, causing laughter to erupt between them. They earned a glare from their higher ups, the quiet Krystal, the bitter Key, and an angry Boa, which caused them to shut up immediately.

 

"The director is coming," a man in his late 30's announces, followed by more older men and women. They were agents who report directly to the director and Sungmin's seniors and higher ups.

 

As if on queue, an elderly man walked into the room and all agents immediately stood up and bowed to him.

 

He looks around the room. 

 

"Where is Agent Jung?"

 

Yunho had always been one of the exceptional agents within the agency. He had caught the director's attention since day one and the latter still had his eyes on him afterwards.

 

Sooyoung raises her hand. "He is resting in the infirmary room, Director Lee."

 

The man, Lee Cheolsu, nods understandingly. He seats himself on the lone chair on the far side of the conference table while two men, who appeared to be bodyguards, stood besides him. Hyukjae thought that it would be unnecessary since they have meetings almost every month. But then again, Helios is a very sensitive and dangerous topic.

 

"Agent Kwon, report," a man who sat near Director Lee spoke.

 

Boa clears her throat. "A while ago, I assigned Special Agent Park Jungsoo and Special Agent Kim Youngwoon to collect intel on an organization of hacktivists called Helios." Boa saw her coworkers from her department look at her in surprise, being unaware of the whole situation. "However, after a good amount of progress, the two have mysteriously disappeared. I decided to give the mission to one of our agents in my division. Initially, I assigned Agent Jung Yunho and Agent Kim Heechul to continue the mission. Unfortunately, Agent Kim had applied for a leave months before."

 

Everyone's eyes were still on Boa, no one dared to say a word about it. Heechul may be a senior agent, but many of the higher ups disliked him for his straightforward and strong attitude.

 

"I have assigned our newest addition, Agent Shim Changmin, to cover Agent Kim for the mission as Agent Jung's partner."

 

The quiet and tense room broke into a fit of complaints of disbelief, mocking laughter, and judging stares. Boa manages to ignore the hateful glares thrown at her, her eyes did glance over to the agents if her department, who gazed at her worriedly.

 

"Agent Shim had just finished his basic training and you're already putting him in such position!?"

 

"What the hell is Agent Kwon thinking!?"

 

"He'll obviously be a burden to Agent Jung."

 

"It's no wonder Yunho hated him."

 

"The world is in danger and you're sending in some child into the field?"

 

"Agent Kim himself is irresponsible, I wouldn't be surprised if a newbie were to replace him that easy..."

 

"I still can't believe they recruited some street rat-"

 

"Silence!"

 

Within a second, the room went as quiet as it was before.

 

Director Lee eyes the room with a blank expression.

 

Boa continued her report.

 

"Agent Shim will be going through a month of intensive training and will be trained by Agent Jung himself. Their only mission is to continue Agent Park and Agent Kim's mission, that being collecting intel on Helios. There hasn't been anything further than that since I myself wouldn't trust Agent Shim on going head-to-head with Helios," Boa continues, eyes on the agents who had badmouthed her about her decision.

 

"A month would take too long and Helios would have gotten to us weeks before," a man named Hongki spitefully retorts. Hongki is one of the men who reports directly to Director Lee. "You have plenty of agents besides Agent Shim to replace Agent Kim as Yunho's partner."

 

"Or perhaps Yunho could do it himself," says the man who sat near Director Lee. Boa knew him as Kim 'Not Key' Kibum.

 

Boa shook her head. "That wouldn't be possible."

 

"Don't you think Lee Sungmin would fit the job better?" another underling of Director Lee, Taeyeon, inquires. The aforementioned man shook his head with a small smile.

 

"That wouldn't be my expertise, Agent Kim," Sungmin sheepishly replies. "Changmin is the perfect candidate for this mission due to his skills in gaining intelligence." Taeyeon turns to eye Hyukjae and Siwon.

 

Hyukjae shook his head, but was unable to speak much due to his cold, so Siwon spoke up for the both of them instead.

 

"Our reason is the same as Sungmin-hyung's," was Siwon's reply, he gestures his coworkers who sat besides him, “None of us have the knowledge nor skill on...hacking- or intelligence collecting." It was clear from Siwon's hesitant tone that he doesn't really know what Leeteuk and Kangin's mission is actually about.

 

"Agent Cho?" Hongki turns to one of the youngest agent in the room. Everyone else in the room turned to look at the bored-looking young man who looked like he was about to fall asleep.

 

"Unfortunately, I was never a field agent to begin with," Kyuhyun drawls in reply. Hyukjae kicks him on his shin underneath the table due to the lack of respect in his tone.

 

Hongki eyes the other agents with a helpless look. It seemed like he was very much against Changmin being Yunho's partner on this mission.

 

"I'm afraid there's no other choice, Agent Lee," Taeyeon spoke up. There was a barely audible sigh in her tone. Taeyeon turns to look at the director.

 

Director Lee, who had been quiet the whole time, decided to speak up after all eyes went to him. "Agent Cho cannot be promoted to field agent for many reasons, therefore Agent Shim is the only perfect delegate for this mission." There were numerous of whispers heard across the room, though Director Lee decided not to speak up about it. He eyes Kyuhyun for a moment; the younger was staring back to him with an expressionless look before looking away.

 

"That's it? The meeting's over?" Hongki shot up a bit too excitedly.

 

"No. We haven't discussed about Helios," was Boa's reply.

 

She could hear Hongki and several of her coworkers groan at that.

 

* * *

 

"I believe you owe us an explanation." Hyukjae eyes his boss with a cold expression. Boa remained unfazed underneath the angry gazes of her underlings, which Hyukjae found admirable about her. In the small break room stood several grown ups that even Hyukjae wondered if the room expanded since the last time he went here. Krystal, Amber, Sooyoung, and Hyukjae had taken the couch, Boa stood by the entrance, her back leaning against the wall. Siwon, Sungmin, Key, Minho, and Kyuhyun stood in the room surrounding Boa as well, with Kyuhyun sitting on of the loveseats, eyes not meeting anyone else's.

 

Boa takes a deep breath and exhales.

 

"I was going to tell you, but the situation got out of hand," Boa answers slowly.

 

"So you only told Jungsoo-hyung and Youngwoon-hyung?" Hyukjae enquires. "And Yunho and Heechul?"

 

Boa shook her head. "Agent Cho and Agent Shim know about it as well." All eyes went to Kyuhyun, who still had his head facing downwards.

 

"Well what do you know," Sungmin says sarcastically, "the newbie knows more than us."

 

"It's not that I didn't want to tell any of you," Boa glares at Sungmin, who merely looked somewhere else, "I kept it from you to protect you all."

 

Hyukjae shrugs. "Big deal, they know about our family. It's bound to happen if they've seen our faces once or twice."

 

Boa grits her teeth. "Would you still be saying that if they knew about the identities of the people we're close with without any blood relations, Hyukjae?" Hyukjae froze at that. "Your boyfriend could be in trouble-"

 

"Shut up," Hyukjae barks out.

 

Boa slightly winces at Hyukjae's tone. Her eyes went to Kyuhyun when the younger finally looked up.

 

"Don't blame Agent Kwon for this," was all he said.

 

"We, as a whole division, deserve to know about it, Cho," Siwon retorts.

 

Amber looked between Kyuhyun and Siwon, who look like they're about to rip each other's throats off.

 

"Look," Amber starts, "maybe Boa had a good reason not to tell us. We just need to listen to her reasons."

 

"I agree with Amber," Minho says.

 

Amber nods to Boa, signing her to start explaining the reason why they were kept from this piece of information.

 

* * *

 

Changmin finally left the building around 6 PM, an hour after the meeting had finished. He didn't care that he missed the so-called important meeting, all he wanted to do now was rest and probably never return to that crazy organization known as SM.

 

He flopped himself on top of his comfy and soft bed.

 

It had been a tiring day for Changmin despite his activities had only lasted for a few hours. The only upside of the day was when he befriended one of the agents there, Cho Kyuhyun.

 

Well, 'befriended' wouldn't be the right word. Changmin had no friends.

 

The first agent he had met was Kim Heechul, the man who saw potential within him and recruited him to the organization. Changmin heard that Heechul was known to be the 'stray cat keeper' as the older man often finds himself recruiting agents from the strangest places, Kyuhyun being one of them.

 

Later, he met Boa, who was nice but somewhat strict. Changmin didn't have many opinions on her.

 

Third, he met Jung Yunho and everyone knew how that went down.

 

He was acquainted to Choi Siwon, the goody two shoes 'chivalry isn't dead' man. While Sungmin could be quite annoying but sweet at the same time, Changmin didn't mind him. Amber was a bit too loud for him, but he finds her quite likable as a person. Krystal scared him quite a bit, honestly, but despite her cold attitude, Changmin liked her more than Yunho. The doctor, Sooyoung, was a nice woman and Changmin could see himself befriending her some day, while Minho was a brat, he tolerated him. He has yet to meet Key and Hyukjae, but from what he's heard, they don't seem to be likable people.

 

Changmin later figures that the only person he genuinely likes was Kyuhyun. He notes to himself that he would try and be nicer towards him, but he wouldn't befriend him just yet. Referring to Kyuhyun as a 'friend' was much simpler than...whatever he actually saw Kyuhyun as.

 

Opening up to people was like a disease to Changmin.

 

And Changmin would do anything to avoid that.

 


	6. Of Sparring and Making Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changmin finds a friend in the form of Cho Kyuhyun, while the tension between Yunho and Changmin grows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW FOR IMPLICATIONS OF DEATH during Kyuhyun and Changmin's conversation. 
> 
> With what happened last week, it might be a sensitive topic to many of you. I wrote this chapter days before it happened, I apologize if it made anyone uncomfortable, please do tell me if i should remove the scene or not

"You're still too slow."

 

Changmin glowers at Yunho, who stood proudly above him, aiming a small wooden rod towards him like a sword. The younger slowly gets up, ignoring his aching shoulders and ankles. It had been 2 days since the running incident and Changmin had not completely healed, though he realized how important the mission was for SM and for the safety of the world, so he pushed himself.

 

Yunho was a tough opponent. Changmin wasn't unfamiliar with fighting as he had been involved in a lot of them in the streets, but Yunho was definitely unlike the thugs he had fought back then. Yunho was an elegant fighter, he wasn't messy and ungraceful fighter like them, instead, Changmin himself had found difficulty in focusing on the actual fight, as Yunho was a rather large distraction for him.

 

Yunho wasn't as fit as Changmin was, he had a chubby side (to which Changmin finds endearing, despite not admitting it), though it didn't mean that Changmin was in any way better than he was since this was the fourth time he had fallen in a fight against Yunho. Well, technically 14th time if he counted the 10 practice rounds where Yunho was merely testing his skills in different areas.

 

He glares at the older man, whose expression remained unreadable so Changmin couldn't tell if he was enjoying beating the taller man around like a volleyball.

 

However, Yunho sneers at him.

 

"Your stance is ugly," he jeers, "and you focus too much on attacking that you forget to defend yourself."

 

"Since when were you an expert on fighting?"

 

"I got it all from Sungmin-hyung," replies Yunho, "and I doubt you can even stand a chance against him if you can't even beat me once. I still question why Boa thought it'd be a good idea to put you up with me."

 

"Well, your partner ditched you for his fiancé, Jung," Changmin smirks.

 

Yunho twitches.

 

"You truly are a street rat," Yunho spat, "you need Sungmin-hyung to discipline you. I know he's responsible of getting every agent within the department in line and like everyone else, you need to go through it as well. Your attitude's pissing me off."

 

Changmin barks out a dry laugh.

 

"Get off your high horse, Jung," Changmin rolls his eyes, ignoring the agitated look on his senior's face, "I damn well know you had it worse than me and unfortunately, I've had it with you."

 

"Then quit."

 

"I won't."

 

Yunho narrows his eyes.

 

"Why not?"

 

"Do you really think that you can gather intel alone? Everyone knows that Agent Kim was the brains and you're the muscle, without him, you're practically useless," Changmin hisses, "your knowledge on technology is average at best, a normal civilian being poor, and Agent Cho, Agent Kim, and I being the best. I'm not being cocky here, merely stating the truth."

 

"Didn't you just tell me to stop being cocky? You're a hypocrite, Shim."

 

Changmin chuckles. "I told you to stop telling me your sob story about how Agent Lee trained you because I really don't care." Changmin walked closer to Yunho, looking at him challengingly, "if you really admire your Sungmin-hyung, then why aren't you doing as good as he is? All you've been doing is using him as a threat. You're all bark with no bite."

 

Yunho walked closer, jaw clenching. "But the reality is I can still put you to your place even if I'm not Sungmin-hyung, how about that, Shim? Perhaps I do have to stop using him as a threat if my own self can knock you down anytime."

 

Changmin clicks his tongue.

 

"Then show me."

 

Without warning, Yunho lunged forward, but the younger agent managed to avoid it in time. Yunho wouldn't lie, he was impressed by his quick reaction, seems like he's learned from before.

 

Changmin's moves were less predictable than before, though his stance was weak, causing his attacks to be less effective on Yunho. Yunho manages to dodge and defend against Changmin's kicks and repetitive strikes.

 

The younger man finally landed a hit on Yunho's jaw, causing the latter to flinch back for a moment. Changmin was smirking victoriously at Yunho's short retreat, but was easily taken aback by his sudden recovery. Yunho succeeded in landing a rather hard kick against his torso, which made the younger groan in pain. Changmin ended up defending himself from the older man's never ending hits, until he manages to dive down, freeing himself from the melee attack.

 

Yunho was quick to follow where Changmin went and went for another hit, but Yunho failed to notice Changmin's quick reaction to hold his fist, the younger smirks at him and before Yunho knew it, Changmin had knocked him down.

 

The younger went down to straddle him, pulling a small wooden rod out of its sheath and holding it against Yunho's neck.

 

"I win."

 

Changmin was breathing heavily, sweat drenching his whole body. The grey sleeveless shirt he wore had clung onto him, all drenched as well, while his hair had stuck to his forehead. He was smiling victoriously down to his defeated senior.

 

Said senior appeared rather flustered than defeated or shocked like Changmin would expect. He, like his junior, was breathing unevenly, shirt drenched and clinging onto him like glue, his bangs covering his forehead. However, Yunho's face may be red like Changmin's, but for a different reason.

 

The younger man was too close to him.

 

Way to close.

 

He couldn't utter a single word out while Changmin remained above him. His trembling hands slowly reached up to Changmin's arms and slightly pushed him away, signaling that he was no way comfortable in such compromising position. Yunho managed to sputter out incoherent words from his lips, confusing the younger.

 

"You said something, Jung?" Changmin leans slightly closer towards Yunho's face, which set off the alarms in his mind, his face flushing even more than before.

 

A silent minute felt like an eternity for the two agents. A rather loud banging was heard and the door slammed open, revealing an agitated Hyukjae and a smug Siwon, who appeared to be engaged in a heated argument.

 

"For the last time, Siwon, I'm not interested in going on a double date with you and whoever the fuck the poor person you're dating is! Especially not after the things you said about going after my boyfriend even though you're fucking straight-" Hyukjae pauses upon the rather bewildering sight before him, even Siwon's smug smile had fallen from his face, replaced by a gaping mouth.

 

Hyukjae's eyes were as wide as the two agents who were currently on the ground, while Siwon's hand slowly went up to cover his mouth, as if he felt scandalized.

 

"Uh," Hyukjae sputters out, "we'll come back later." He turns around and began pushing Siwon out.

 

"Hyuk, no!" Yunho pushed Changmin off him roughly and got on his feet, chasing after his younger colleagues. "It's not what you think!"

 

Hyukjae laughs nervously. "Uh, don't mind us, Yunho. We should've waited for you to reply or-"

 

"For fuck's sake, Hyukjae! We were just sparring!"

 

Hyukjae narrows his eyes at Yunho in suspicion. He glances at Changmin, who was sprawled out on the floor, looking somewhat flustered with his gaze casted downwards, and back to Yunho, who looked pissed.

 

"Uh," Hyukjae finds himself saying for the millionth time, "so all five rounds done? You've been here for hours, y'know. Boa was worried you guys ended up killing each other or something." Siwon merely nodded to everything Hyukjae said, still looking shocked.

 

Yunho sighs. "We did 10 practice rounds and 5 actual one."

 

Siwon smiles brightly and shoves Hyukjae aside. "Great! Boa wants a report about his progress and he's all set for the mission."

 

Yunho widens his eyes. "That fast? I thought the mission's next month..."

 

An ill-tempered Hyukjae walked back towards the duo. "Well, the director's pets didn't like that we were delaying the mission too long and wanted us to pick up the pace. Your mission starts next week if Shim passes."

 

"We haven't even gotten to the best parts yet..."

 

Siwon laughs. "Unfortunately, that will have to wait, Agent Jung. Now get dressed and report to Agent Kwon's office." Siwon glances at Changmin. "You as well, Agent Shim."

 

Changmin blinks twice before carefully getting up, not wanting to worsen his aching muscles. Hyukjae was quick to notice the younger man limp as he walked towards them.  


"Are you hurt anywhere, Agent Shim?" Hyukjae peered at the younger agent in concern.

 

Changmin shook his head. "I'm fine, Agent Lee." Changmin had not been properly introduced to the older agent yet, but Yunho had been yelling his name the moment he walked in, so Changmin guesses that it was the infamous Lee Hyukjae.

 

"You're limping. Get yourself checked at Sooyoung now," Hyukjae spoke in a commanding tone.

 

Changmin opened his mouth to say something, but immediately shrunk under Hyukjae's sharp and condescending gaze. There was something about the man that made him feel less defiant, unlike when he was around Yunho.

 

"Understood. I'll be leaving now," Changmin drones before making a beeline out of the room, brushing his shoulder against Yunho's and glancing at him one last time before disappearing from his sights.

 

Sighing, Hyukjae went to look at Yunho. "You should take good care of your juniors, Yunho."

 

Yunho rolls his eyes. "He doesn't respect me, why should I?"

 

"Well, try to treat him better?"

 

The older agent shook his head. "He's been that way since our first meeting. It's useless to get on his good side now."

 

"He's only messing with you, Jung," Siwon chirps in as the three turned to leave the training room.

 

Hyukjae grimaces before agreeing with his partner. "He's right. You look like you have a stick up your ass half of the time, maybe he's just trying to get a reaction out of you."

 

Yunho looks at Hyukjae and Siwon with an appalled look, to which both agents shrug in return. Shaking his head once more, Yunho turned away towards the changing room, leaving Hyukjae and Siwon eying him from the distance worriedly.

 

* * *

 

"I have the information you wanted on Shim Changmin, sir," several folders were placed carefully on top of the empty desk. "We already have everything we need on Jung Yunho in our database. Shim's profile was a challenge to retrieve."

 

The man who sat on the seat on the other end of the table observes the folders disinterestedly.

 

The man who stood looked at his boss with an unreadable look. "Does this not fulfill your request?"

 

The older man shook his head.

 

"No. It's enough," he eyes the folders once more, specifically on the small 3x4 photo of a younger version of Changmin from high school and another one where he looked older, right before he joined SM. "Give me a short report then you may leave."

 

The other man blinks once and reaches for the top folder. "Special Agent Shim Changmin, aged 24, specializes in data collecting, forgery, and breaking through security, a high school graduate..." he pauses for a moment, "was once arrested for thievery, though he was bailed by...Kim Heechul," he spat the last two words out. "Surprisingly, he did well in high school, not sure why he didn't go to college."

 

The older man shook his head once more.

 

"It's also stated here that he has no known family," he mutters, "there are no information on his biological parents."

 

The other man was quiet.

 

"Sir?"

 

"That's enough," he gruffly says, "I'll read the rest myself. You are dismissed."

 

The other man nodded.

 

"Is there anything else I must look into?"

 

The older man thought for a moment.

 

"Tail them. Don't get caught."

 

The younger man bows.

 

"As you wish, sir."

 

* * *

 

_"We couldn't let any of you know because the director initially suspected that an inside job was done. That one of us is apart of Helios. Though he knew that he couldn't keep this from us all forever, thus why he held a meeting. I'm really sorry that I kept it from you all, but you must understand that work comes first before our relationships."_

Boa's words rang inside Kyuhyun's mind once more. He couldn't erase the guilt he felt when his colleagues looked at him as if he was the one to suspect his own friends. No, Kyuhyun only followed orders, orders he had no control over.

 

He sat blankly in front of his computer screen that displayed a big 'GAME OVER' over the black screen.

 

Sighing, he exited the game and went back to his 'work screen', which showed several security cameras he managed to access that could possibly show Jungsoo and Youngwoon's last locations. Though unfortunately, he had no luck in searching for his two seniors.

 

A soft knock was heard from the door, Kyuhyun sluggishly turns to look at the door.

 

"Come in."

 

The knob was twisted slowly and light shone into Kyuhyun's dark lair, revealing a tall figure that was no other than Changmin. The slightly younger man took his time to look around the dark room before walking in and closing the door.

 

Kyuhyun smiles tiredly.

 

"Hey."

 

"Hey yourself," replies Changmin. He makes his way towards the couch and sat down, eyes everywhere but on Kyuhyun.

 

Kyuhyun spun around on his office chair.

 

"So, what brings you here?"

 

"Waiting for my report," Changmin replies, "if I'm eligible for the mission or not. I...don't really feel welcome anywhere else, honestly. Sooyoung told me to go to you."

 

Kyuhyun nodded understandingly. "The higher ups did change a lot of requirements for the mission...I'm surprised they didn't test your skills in accessing some company's database or breaking through security or whatever."

 

"They already trust me on that," Changmin retorted, "They were worried about my physique and fighting skills."

Kyuhyun eyes him up and down, lips curling downwards. "Dude, I may not be a body builder or some shit, but I know a fit body when I see one. Compared to me, you're one fine specimen." Changmin chuckles at Kyuhyun's exaggerated and obvious ogling towards his body. The younger was clad in a white shirt, his jacket suit slung over his shoulder, thus showing off the lines of his fit body.

 

"Come on, you can't be that bad."

 

Kyuhyun smiles sadly and spun around to face his monitor again, eyes scanning over the ever-so-eventful security cameras.

 

Changmin frowns and lowers his gaze.

 

"Am I...bothering you?"

 

Kyuhyun didn't turn around.

 

"No. These security cameras are a fucking bore, it's nice to have company here."

 

Changmin nods.

 

Another pause.

 

"Did you have a hard time when you first joined?" Kyuhyun had told him a bit of his story when they first met, but he never really went into detail. "Why did they recruit you in such a young age?"

 

Kyuhyun was quiet for a moment before finally standing up from his chair and sat himself besides Changmin. The younger was met by Kyuhyun's somewhat sympathetic expression.

 

"I was 16 when I first joined. I was the first agent to ever enter the agency in such a young age. It didn't help that I joined because Heechul manipulated me into doing so by changing the police's mind about arresting me, hell, he was the one to catch me in the first place," Kyuhyun murmurs darkly. "I was a rebellious kid who didn't have anyone I could call a family. I lived alone in a giant mansion with hundreds of housekeepers...but of course, I never felt like I wasn't alone."

 

Changmin was surprised by the fact that Kyuhyun wasn't an orphan like he originally thought he was. A kid like him who managed to land himself in one of the most wanted list should've been some unsupervised kid who had too much free time on his hand. But no, Kyuhyun had a home, he had people to look after him, yet...he never really mentioned a real family before.

 

"My parents went missing on their way back from a business trip," Kyuhyun suddenly says, noticing that Changmin deep in thought, "the plane...disappeared. They couldn't find any remains of the plane," Kyuhyun drawls out, pain visible in his eyes, "I...honestly still believe the plane didn't crash," Kyuhyun's voice wavered a little, "But it's been almost 12 years, so...yeah."

 

Changmin was quiet, not daring to say anything.

 

"Anyways," Kyuhyun's demeanor quickly changed, "we're not here to talk about that. So yeah, back to the main subject." Changmin was shocked by a sudden appearance of Kyuhyun's smirk. "When I first joined, everyone was an ass to me, Hyukjae especially. He was only a year my senior, yet he acted like a total jackass...as if he owned the whole company," Kyuhyun chuckles at that, while Changmin could imagine how much of a dick Hyukjae could have been. "We finally accepted that we were both equals when we both broke some office chairs due to an unexpected tussle...I mean, hell, Boa told us to fix it by hand!" Changmin snickers at that.

 

"Siwon joined the company the same time as I did, but a few months earlier. He was...nice I guess, but was quite patronizing if you ask me," Kyuhyun grumbles. "You haven't met them, but Jungsoo was also an ass. We fought a lot and in the end, it was me who bullied him a lot. While Youngwoon...was a strict man. I wasn't. You can imagine how it went." Kyuhyun thought for a moment, "Amber was too loud for me. She was cool, but...not really my type of company."

 

"Sungmin is..." Kyuhyun rolls his eyes, "the embodiment of satan. He's a cruel man, Shim. Don't let those cute looks fool you. Same goes for Boa, but that, you probably know. She treated me like how she treated you, but imagine a 16 year old and a 21 year old instead. It was like world war. Heechul was like that with me as well, but he took more care of me, so it's cool."

 

"How about...Yunho?"

 

Kyuhyun smirks. "Ah, aren't you curious..." Changmin flushes, but rolls his eyes.

 

"Shut up, Cho."

 

"Well, he certainly didn't let me straddle nor cuddle him in the middle of the road," Kyuhyun flashes a mischievous grin, to which Changmin's face immediately turned red as a tomato, from both anger and embarrassment.

 

"Fuck you, Cho, just- ugh!" Changmin groans loudly into his palms, while Kyuhyun laughs at him.

 

"You know, Shim," Kyuhyun starts, ignoring the glare Changmin threw at him, "I like you."

 

Changmin ceases his glaring. "Well...this is too sudden, Kyuhyun. I don't know..." Kyuhyun lightly punches Changmin in the arm, earning a mocking laughter from the other.

 

"Shut the fuck up, you suck, Changmin."

 

Changmin cracks a smile. "I mean...you're a cool guy. Unlike most of the people here."

 

Kyuhyun patted him on the shoulder. "We had to deal with the same shit when we joined so I totally understand what you're going through. You just need a friend to hang on to and support you. You can drop by my lair anytime, _Chwang_." Wait, lair? More importantly, ' _Chwang_ '?

 

Changmin cringes at the nickname Kyuhyun gave him, but smiled nevertheless.

 

"You're a good friend, Kyu."

 

* * *

 

 "Congratulations, Agent Shim. You passed your intensive training," Boa announces, looking at the two men who stood before her. "Your mission begins tomorrow. You and Agent Jung are assigned to find and retrieve Kim Jongwoon, who goes by Kim Jonghoon now, or 'Yesung'. You will be supervised by Special Agent Lee Sungmin, who will guide you through your mission, and Agent Cho, who will help remove obstacles from your mission." The statement caused Yunho to raise a brow.

 

"I thought Agent Lee had other business."

 

Boa winces. "Director Lee and his 'pets' have not fully trusted you and Agent Shim yet, the latter specifically. No offense."

 

Changmin remained unfazed. "None taken, Agent Kwon."

 

Boa nodded. "You will be heading to Tokyo tomorrow night at 9 PM sharp from our headquarters along with Agent Lee and Agent Cho, you are expected to arrive within an hour. There will be no resting when you arrive, please remember that."

 

Yunho inwardly groans; since no one else was around, he didn't act as professional as he's supposed to be.

 

"Boa, then why the hell must our flight be so late at night?" whines Yunho. Changmin was appalled by the man's childish attitude.

 

Boa's expression remained stern. "So you can rest throughout the day since you'll be working from night to dawn and then the next night. When you arrive, you are will meet a man named Fujiwara Akihiko, who will help you get to Jonghoon since the man works for him. Arresting him immediately would cause a ruckus, so we want you to kidnap him and bring him back to South Korea as discreet as possible."

 

"He works in Fujiwara Group under a different name?" Yunho deadpans, "well that's one way to hide yourself. Especially for someone who's part of the mafia," he spoke with a sarcastic tone, causing Changmin to roll his eyes.

 

Boa's lips twitches into a small smile for a split second. "That is...one way to put it. He previously worked undercover in South Korea under another company, gathering information for Helios. But unfortunately, according to our latest information, Helios had compromised the company when Teuk and Youngwoon got there...and the two are yet to be found as well."

 

"So our mission?"

 

"Mr. Fujiwara will be holding a charity gala, where Jonghoon would be attending. There's a big chance that Jonghoon would recognize you, so be cautious and try to disguise yourself a bit. If you cause a scene during the gala, Helios would most definitely be aware of our plans, thus ending our fight against them."

 

Changmin now understood why the company didn't trust him with the mission. It was important and one wrong move would mean that it's all over. Agent Park and Agent Kim's failure was their first warning.

 

Yunho nodded. "Understood."

 

Boa eyes Yunho. "Yunho, while you're away, make sure someone looks after your brother. We don't know what Helios is capable of."

 

Yunho had a brother?"

 

The older man nods.

 

"I will make sure of that."

 

Boa looks between the two men.

 

"You are both dismissed for today."

 


	7. Arrival

Yunho decided to drop by Donghae's apartment and perhaps stay there for the night. He took Boa's advice seriously and todat, he's going to try and persuade Donghae to stay with someone while he's away. Yunho realizes that it would be quite a challenge since he never really sees his brother around other people, nor did Yunho remember him seeing anyone.

 

"Donghae."

 

Yunho watches the younger man walk towards him with a curious expression adorning his face.

 

"Is there something wrong, hyung?"

 

Donghae's hair was still quite short since he wasn't discharged long ago, but the latter had already dyed it brown. It was something Yunho didn't understand, but Donghae does what he does, apparently.

 

"I'm going out of the country for the next few days," he spoke, while the younger's eyes widen, "and uh, I want you to stay with someone as long as I'm gone."

 

Donghae chuckles. "Hyung, I'm an adult, I can take care of myself." Though Donghae did plan to sleep at his boyfriend's for a few days since they rarely see each other. His boyfriend had fallen sick not long ago and had not completely healed, the younger wanted to take care of him since his boyfriend could be quite reckless at times.

 

Yunho frowns; seemingly lost in thought.

 

"We both know how clumsy you are. What if you set the apartment on fire while trying to cook?" Yunho knew that it sounded forced, but he was desperate to get Donghae to stay with someone.

 

Donghae eyes him in suspicion. "Are you hiding something from me?"

 

"No!" Yunho retorted a bit too quick, "I mean, there's a reason, but I can't tell you now. So please, stay with someone while I'm away." He reaches over to engulf Donghae's small hands inside his large ones, flashing him a somewhat forced smile, which creeps Donghae out.

 

Donghae squints his eyes. "Well...if you really do think I'm going to burn the apartment somehow, then fine, I'll do it for you, hyung." Donghae knew something fishy was going on and that Yunho was definitely hiding something, but he decided to not push it any further.

 

Yunho sighs in relief. That was easier than he thought it'd be. Unfortunately, he's still going to have to explain to Donghae why Yunho made him do so, but it could wait after the mission.

 

"So...where will you be going and how long?" Donghae asks after a moment of silence. "And what will you be doing?"

 

Yunho snorts. "Why do I feel like you're interrogating me?"

 

Donghae rolls his eyes. "That's rich coming from someone who told me, a grown man, fresh out of military, was active as a conscripted policeman, to stay with someone while you're out of town."

 

Yunho grins sheepishly.

 

"Isn't it every older brother's job to look after their younger siblings?"

 

Donghae snickers, playfully shoving Yunho. "God, you're the worst, hyung. Just answer the question."

 

"Well, I'll be in Japan, specifically Tokyo, to attend a charity gala," came Yunho's reply, "I'll be flying to Japan tomorrow night, so you better be staying with someone by the afternoon."

 

"But...you're only an accountant..." Donghae mutters, growing suspicious of Yunho's strange attitude. Yunho panicked for a split moment.

 

"The boss-" he cut his brother off, "favors me. His assistant couldn't attend with him so he asked me to come with. We're good friends." Yunho really hoped it sounded believable.

 

Donghae pouted. "Man, you get to do the cool shit." Yunho twitches. Donghae had no idea.

 

"Then don't work in the library! There are tons of places to work in where you won't look like you lost your will to live."

 

"Yeah..." Donghae shook his head, however, "I'm pretty happy with my workplace right now, it just gets a bit boring sometimes." Donghae looked at the clock, "come on, hyung, it's still early, let's go out and eat. I'm bored," The younger man stood up and started tugging on Yunho's arm like a child dragging his mother into the toy store.

 

Yunho grumbles, still tired from his sparring sessions, but reluctantly complies with his younger brother's whims. He felt powerless whenever Donghae flashes his puppy eyes at him.

 

"Fine, fine, slow down, will you?" Yunho whines, resisting Donghae's hard pulls.

 

"Oh," Donghae looked apologetic, noticing Yunho in pain, "did I break your back, old man?" Donghae cheekily smiled at the last remark.

 

"Why you little-"

 

Yunho ended up chasing Donghae around the apartment and down the emergency stairs, while Yunho was panting and trying so hard to keep up, Donghae was happily skipping his way downstairs. The two grown men earned strange looks from the security guards and Donghae's neighbors.

 

By the time they reached the mall, Yunho's legs felt like they were about to give in any moment (they walked all the way there, mind you). Donghae was sweating, but he didn't look exhausted at all.

 

Donghae ran his fingers through his short hair, grinning down to his elder brother, who was close to toppling over the ground.

 

"Lost your touch, hyung?"

 

"Donghae, I'm still injured from last time," Yunho said between pants, looking up to his brother in annoyance, "you insensitive prick." Yunho knew that he shouldn't strain himself with the mission coming up tomorrow, but there were no excuses when it comes to Donghae.

 

Donghae managed to help his brother stand up straighter despite their height gap. The younger patted Yunho's back, cracking him another smile, "come on, I'll make it up to you, hyung. My treat."

 

Yunho eyes the shorter man for moment before shrugging. He let the younger lead him into the restaurant Yunho had requested himself.

 

* * *

 

Changmin had nothing better to do for the rest of the day so he decided to head to the mall and look for food.

 

He wishes that he had someone to go with, but it was unfortunate that everyone he knew couldn't go with him, by 'everyone' he meant 4 or 5 people. He had texted Kyuhyun to ask if he wanted to go with him, unfortunately, Boa didn't let him go out until work hours were finished since lunch break had already ended.

 

He sluggishly made his way to a small Japanese restaurant located on the basement floor. Luckily, during weekdays, said restaurant never had much customers coming and Changmin wasn't in the mood to deal with people after what happened today.

 

He was greeted by one of the waitresses who guided him towards his table. There were only a few people occupying the restaurant, however...

 

Changmin's gaze landed on a familiar-looking figure.

 

He could feel his eye twitch and mood turning sour already.

 

Jung _Fucking_ Yunho.

 

Gritting his teeth, he quickly turns away, only to catch the sad look on the waitress who was behind him.

 

"Are you leaving already, sir?"

 

Changmin later finds himself seated a table away from Yunho after the waitress had successfully guilt tripped him into staying. He hid his face behind the large menu while occasionally glancing at Yunho. Using the skills he's been taught by his agency, he managed to execute them perfectly without Yunho catching on. Changmin smirks to himself, lowering the menu a bit since Yunho looked like he was engaged in a lively conversation with a mysterious man.

 

Changmin's eyes were on the menu, slightly eavesdropping to Yunho's conversation until it suddenly became quiet.

 

"Shim?"

 

Oh shit.

 

Changmin's smile fell from his face, replaced by a panicked look, then slowly turning into an agitated one when Yunho's frowning face met his.

 

Changmin wanted to cuss at Yunho for being so stupid, that being greeting him in the first place. Why the hell would a senior agent do that? He should know more about how not to fuck it up when you're not working.

 

Changmin stiffly nods. "Sunbaenim."

 

The small man next to Yunho raises his brows.

 

"Is he from work, hyung?"

 

 _'So this is Yunho's brother...'_ Changmin thought to himself, _'welp, I'll need my memories erased now.'_

 

What was notable to Changmin was that Yunho's brother looked nothing like Yunho at all. Changmin made a mental note to probably find out about that later on. Not that he cares about Yunho's family or anything.

 

Yunho glares at Changmin one last time before softening his gaze when he looks at his brother. "Yeah. He is."

 

The younger man smiles. "Invite him to have dinner with us then, hyung." Both Changmin and Yunho's eyes twitch at that, while Changmin looks away, Yunho forces a smile on his lips.

 

"Let's not bother him, Hae."

 

'Hae' pouts and Changmin was astonished. Astonished on how a grown man could pull off such a face without making it cringe-worthy or creepy. Changmin could feel himself growing awkward being stuck in such situation.

 

"Hyung, don't be rude to your colleagues."

 

"He's a grown man, Donghae. He can take me being rude for a change," Yunho threw a nasty look at Changmin, to which the younger rolls his eyes at.

 

Donghae looks at Changmin and then back to Yunho. "Is he the newbie you complained about that time?" Changmin raises a brow, smiling slightly, while Yunho looked agape.

 

Changmin leans his cheek against his hand. "So he spoke of me? How sweet," his voice dripped of sarcasm, though his face showed genuine interest over Donghae's implications.

 

Yunho hisses. "Donghae, leave him alone."

 

"Hyung, you're being childish. You were the one to greet him first anyway."

 

"Yeah, _hyung_ , don't be mean."

 

Yunho felt like he was about to explode.

 

He looks at his brother, who eyes him with a disappointed look, while Changmin was watching the scene unfold before him, looking amused. Finally, Yunho sighs.

 

"He can sit with us," Yunho says, like a high school student who acts as if he owns the cafeteria table.

 

Changmin's smirk widens as he moves to sit on the spare seat across Yunho, who was seated next to Donghae, enjoying the torture he brought to the man despite suffering himself. Donghae chuckles and stretches a hand towards Changmin.

 

"Hi, I'm Donghae, Yunho's younger brother."

 

"Changmin. Your brother's colleague at work."

 

Donghae smiles. "Are you going to the charity gala as well?" Changmin furrows his brows at that and glances at Yunho, who mouthed at him to play along, but don't get caught.

 

"Ah yes, I am."

 

"Neat. Since my brother's coming because his boss favors him, what's your reason?" Changmin stifles a snicker that threatened to escape his lips, giving Yunho an 'are-you-fucking-kidding-me' look, while the elder helplessly shrugs.

 

"I'm his secretary."

 

Donghae's eyes widen. "No wonder hyung dislikes you so much. You're new to work yet you're in a higher rank than he is." Changmin was truly enjoying himself now. He was enjoying the sight of Donghae making googly eyes at him and Yunho, who looked so close to banging his head against the table.

 

"He really dislikes me, huh," Changmin drones, eying Yunho with an amused look.

 

"Dislike is a strong word, I prefer to use 'severely annoyed' at him," Yunho clarifies.

 

Changmin rolls his eyes. "Whatever puts you to sleep at night, _buddy_." Changmin turns to look at the younger man besides Yunho. "So...how old are you?"

 

"I'm 24."

 

"So am I. But I actually thought you were 18," Changmin observes the man even more, "fresh out of the military?"

 

Donghae nods. "I was a conscripted policeman."

 

"You dyed your hair already?"

 

Yunho watches Changmin and Donghae converse as if they've been friends for a long time. The elder reluctantly acknowledges Changmin's people skills and information collecting, or perhaps Donghae just really likes to over-share.

 

They ordered their food, Changmin and Donghae still engaged in a conversation, while Yunho turns his phone on to text Boa.

 

_Yunho: Kwon, the fish has been found out by Shim._

 

Yunho was taught to use codenames when it comes to people who don’t work within SM.

 

_Boa: As long as he doesn't go around telling people it's fine. Shim's not like that, anyway._

 

Unfortunately...Boa was right.

 

Within the organization, only Heechul and Boa knew of Donghae's existence since they've known each other for a really long time. Donghae's close with Boa like a brother to a sister, while Heechul _acted_ like Donghae's second brother ever since they were young. Though they haven't seen each other in a while and neither Donghae nor Heechul has spoken about each other as well.

 

They ate in silence, Yunho spared occasional glares at Changmin, who in return glares back, while Donghae remained completely oblivious.

 

"So, Changmin," Donghae started, "what's work like?"

 

Changmin stops chewing his food, his cheeks stuffed like a chipmunk.

 

"Hyung never really tells me much. Hell, he never actually told me _where_ he works in," Donghae frowns, "so...maybe you'll spill me a little detail?"

 

Changmin slowly swallows his food. "Your hyung is an accountant right? It's like working in any large company, Donghae. There's nothing exciting about it."

 

Donghae huffs upon realizing that Changmin would not tell him either, "Well, what does your company do?"

 

"We work in a telecommunications company. TYCHE. Ever heard of it?"

 

Donghae nodded.

 

"Of course you have. We _are_ one of the biggest companies in South Korea," Changmin drones, "so now you know. Satisfied?"

 

Donghae turns to look at Yunho.

 

"Yah hyung, it took a newbie secretary to tell me about your work. You always acted to secretive towards me."

 

Yunho glares at the chuckling Changmin.

 

"Well I'm sorry I couldn't satisfy your curious little head, _brat_ " Yunho replied sarcastically, still glaring daggers at his partner.

 

Donghae furrows his brows and snaps his attention towards Changmin.

 

"Changmin, you're my new hyung now."

 

Changmin nearly chokes on the food he was chewing.

 

"E-excuse me?"

 

Yunho shut Donghae and Changmin up by elbowing the shorter man rather hard and kicking Changmin's shin, causing them to continue eating their meals quietly. After finishing and paying for their meals, Yunho forces out a quick and polite goodbye to Changmin before dragging Donghae out of the restaurant, Changmin quirks a brow at the sight of the two brothers bickering as they make their way out of the mall.

 

Despite confirming that the two were brothers, it still bothered Changmin to no end that they had looked nothing alike. Neither of them had any similarities, be it facial features or body shape.

 

He pushes his curiosity to the back of his head.

 

He isn't supposed to care about it, dammit.

 

Clicking his tongue, Changmin watches the two disappear from his sights.

 

* * *

 

"So text me the address you're staying in, alright?"

 

"..."

 

"Hae?"

 

"S-sure. I will."

 

Yunho smiles, "alright, be seeing you in a few days. I doubt I'll have time to contact you once I get there so if you need anything; don't."

 

He could feel Donghae roll his eyes at that. "Hyung, I'm 24 years old." There was a pause and Yunho could hear an audible sigh. "Well, have a safe flight, hyung."

 

"Thanks. I'll talk to you soon." Yunho ends the call, smiling to himself. He looks up to see Changmin stare at him, amused, and his smile immediately fell.

 

"Is there a problem, Shim?"

 

Changmin shook his head. "He's your brother, Yunho. Not your son. You should stop being so...overbearing."

 

"In case you forgot, we have an organization of cyber terrorists on our tail and probably knows of our identity, family, and the people we dated when we were 12 years old," Yunho counters, "you really need to be aware of the situation you're in if you want to climb in the ranks, Agent Shim."

 

"Don't forget that I'm your higher up in your imaginary job."

 

"Screw you."

 

"If you two are done bickering like a married couple, we really should get going," an impatient-looking Kyuhyun grumbles out, brushing past them and headed straight into the plane. Sungmin follows him from behind, reluctantly dragging along a large suitcase.

 

The plane will be taking off from SM's headquarters, which was something Yunho was grateful for since he doesn't have to go all the way to the airport.

 

Yunho raises a brow. "Min-hyung, we're only going to be there for a few days..." Yunho knew Sungmin could be fussy when travelling, though the elder knew when he had to be efficient and 'light on his feet'.

 

Sungmin snaps his attention towards his junior. "These, Agent Jung, are our tools for the mission. _You'll_ be bringing my suitcase, along with Agent Cho's." Sungmin gestures the latter, who was dragging a rather large steel box. Sungmin turns to eye Changmin, "you help him as well, Agent Shim." Both Yunho and Changmin immediately went to work after Sungmin turns away.

 

They rode a small plane, enough for around 6 people to fit inside and their many equipment. Changmin could feel himself grow somewhat claustrophobic inside, though fortunately, it wouldn't be a very long flight. The 4 agents sat facing each other, with Yunho facing Kyuhyun and Changmin facing Sungmin.

 

It's only been 15 minutes and Changmin was very bored. He regretted not downloading a lot of songs into his new phone. He looks to his left to see that Yunho had already fallen asleep with his headphones attached.

 

He eyes Sungmin, who sat in front of him; the latter was shuffling on his seat, eyes roaming around the room.

 

"Agent Lee, what are you doing?"

 

Sungmin scratched his neck. "I swear I saw a bag of Cheetos puffs around here..." A loud crunching sound suddenly interrupted him.

 

It came form Kyuhyun, who was eating the last few chips inside the bag, looking rather bored. Sungmin lets out an audible sigh.

 

"Unbelievable..."

 

Kyuhyun stops munching at the sight of a dejected Sungmin and an amused Changmin, he looks at them both once more before shoving the bag forward.

 

"You...want some?"

 

Changmin snickers as Sungmin shoves the almost empty bag back to Kyuhyun, who took it by surprise. Sungmin groans loudly before burying his face into his palm, with one hand reaching for an earphone. Kyuhyun watches the older with a strange look.

 

"Is he...okay?"

 

Changmin shrugs. "He's been shuffling on his seat for a few minutes now. I really didn't expect this from him, honestly." Changmin truly thought Sungmin was the sweet yet strict senior agent, but seeing him looking very...unprofessional and uneasy during flights took him by surprise.

 

Kyuhyun raises a brow. "Well, this is my first time seeing Agent Lee like this..."

 

"Really?"

 

Kyuhyun nodded. "Well...it is my first mission that doesn't involve me sitting on my desk for hours." Well that truly was news for Changmin.

 

"Wait, what?"

 

Kyuhyun shrugs nonchalantly. "I'm no field agent, Shim. I really don't know why they had to drag my ass out all the way to Japan, but...I'm not complaining, y'know?" So this was both Kyuhyun and Changmin's first mission working on the field. Perhaps they do have a lot in common.

 

"Huh..." Changmin slumps back to his seat. "Wait, then who's looking for Agent Park and Agent Kim?"

 

Kyuhyun's expression turns annoyed. "Boa gave the 'mission' to one of the director's pets. Kim Kibum. Not Key."

 

Changmin winces. "I've heard about him. Not a lot of good things though."

 

Kyuhyun chuckles dryly. "Is there really anything good about him? He's so...quiet and reserved, but the next thing you know, he's dragging you through the dirt about a small slip up."

 

Changmin prays that he wouldn't have to confront him one day. "So, why'd they send you to Japan with us again?"

 

"Something about sabotaging the gala's planning. We won't be cooperating that purely with Mr. Fujiwara," mutters Kyuhyun "can't be too bothered about it. I could've done this back in Seoul."

 

Changmin taps his chin. "I'm guessing that they're somehow training you to do work outside of your 'lair' so they'll always have mobile field agents. Especially in a situation like now."

 

"Could be," grumbles Kyuhyun. "For all the trouble they put me through, I hope I get to spend some time there. I really _need_ to visit Akihabara...and a lot of other places."

 

"I doubt that, my friend."

 

After a while, both Kyuhyun and Changmin started to drift off. Their sleep was cut short after Sungmin announced that they were about to land. Yunho was the only one who had slept throughout the whole way unbothered. Changmin regretted not sleeping the moment he stepped into the plane. Apparently, they won't be able to rest any time soon.

 

Changmin didn't bother paying attention to his surroundings nor wherever the plane landed. All he remembered was walking through a very windy field and that there were many planes around him as well. He guessed that it could be some sort of military air base; unfortunately, it was too dark to actually see much.

 

Groggily, Changmin follows Sungmin and Yunho, who walked in front of him, looking quite stern yet energetic. Meanwhile Kyuhyun was lagging behind, trying so hard to keep his eyes open and muttering about needing coffee under his breath.

 

The staff guided them into a small building where there was a conference table with a few chairs surrounding it. He groaned when he read the names on said chairs. Obviously, he had to sit next to Yunho.

 

After seating themselves on their designated chairs, a man walks in, bringing several cups of coffee. Changmin mutters a short thank you in Japanese and immediately downed half of the glass. He looks up to see Kyuhyun asking for refills already.

 

Another man entered the room and took his time to observe the four men sitting by the table. He coughs to gain their attention.

 

"Mr. Fujiwara will be here soon." Sungmin nodded and the man left the room. The eldest of the room looks at the three men before him.

 

"Kyu. Do your thing." The younger nodded and pulls out his laptop. "That was one of our men just now. All cameras inside and outside of this room have been taken care of. All the security is seeing right now is a video of us drinking coffee and chatting with each other."

 

"So...Mr. Fujiwara won't be here anytime soon?"

 

Kyuhyun snorts. "Should've let me done it, Min-hyung. Could've done it before you can say..." Kyuhyun drifted off, eyes focused on the screen. Yunho and Changmin, who were unaware of what was going on, looked at Kyuhyun in curiosity.

 

Sungmin clears his throat. "Right. You two weren't informed of this."

 

"And why the hell not?" deadpans Yunho. If he had to be honest, he was sick of the secrets kept between colleagues.

 

Changmin merely glances between Sungmin and Kyuhyun, waiting for an answer.

 

"This was," Sungmin starts, "a last minute plan. Me and Agent Cho coming was planned the day Changmin passed his intensive training. Our original mission here was to keep an eye on you and for Agent Cho to start his first field mission for future preparations. Before we took off, Kibum had briefed us shortly about our additional mission."

 

"What additional mission?" enquires Changmin.

 

"To sabotage the gala, I'll have control of the electricity of the entire building and all the locked doors that require facial recognition," Kyuhyun replies. "Mr. Fujiwara only knows that we're arresting an employee of his due to past criminal activities and that he was listed high on our most wanted list. What he doesn't know is that Yesung is part of a global-scale cyber terrorist group. We need to do anything that will prevent us from Helios tracing our tails."

 

"Wouldn't informing him on the situation be more helpful to us?"

 

"Some people can't keep their mouths shut," Yunho replies, beginning to understand what Kyuhyun meant. "The public doesn't know about Helios. Involving Mr. Fujiwara might cause an uproar and it would leak into public. Which could endanger us."

 

Changmin felt uneasy. "This is a charity gala. Are we really sabotaging an event like this?"

 

Sungmin smiles. "The charity will be done, don't worry. We're only ruining the party. Did I say that it's a masquerade party?" Sungmin adds gleefully, "courtesy to me, who managed to convince Mr. Fujiwara on that. We cold protect our identities this way. Well, yours and Yunho's."

 

Changmin frowns. "None of you are going in?"

 

Sungmin shook his head. "I'm supervising the mission. I'll be watching from the security cameras with Kyuhyun. If things go south, that's where I come in. I doubt that. Contrary to popular belief, I actually trust you both." Sungmin finishes the sentence with a warm smile, while Kyuhyun gave the two a thumbs up.

 

Yunho and Changmin looked at each other.

 

Yunho had a somewhat uneasy look, while Changmin, for the first time, looked quite nervous.

 

"Alright, I'm in," Kyuhyun grins, while the three other men in the room roll their eyes, "Just in time. According to my sources, Mr. Fujiwara has arrived in the military base. We need to cover this quick," Kyuhyun added quickly.

 

Sungmin nods. "I'll make this quick. The gala will happen tomorrow night at 6, we'll be arriving by 7 since gates close by 7:30. We need you two to look for Yesung and alert us when you find him. Don't interact with him much, but introduce yourselves to him normally," Sungmin pulls out two ID cards and gave one each.

 

"When it reaches 11, I'll give a signal to Changmin to head towards the emergency exit, but don't let Yesung see you. Kyu and I will keep an eye on him until midnight, that's when Kyu here will shut the power down. It'll alert Yesung and he'll be heading towards the emergency exit since the front door will be automatically shut down. Yunho, you chase after him in case he doesn't leave through the emergency exit, alert Changmin on that as well and we'll find a way for you two to corner him."

 

Changmin nodded. "How do we escort him out? And what about the other people?"

 

"Knock him out and we'll have our men find your location and get you out of the building. We'll turn the power back on when you leave," Kyuhyun replies. "As for the others, we have it covered, don't worry."

 

Sungmin nods, turning to face Yunho and Changmin again. "Is that clear?"

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"Good. We'll talk about it again tomorrow evening, before the event, in case there are changes of plan," Sungmin says.

 

"Mr. Fujiwara's coming in. Shim, Jung, check your phones and answer Mr. Fujiwara accordingly," Kyuhyun orders. Changmin looks down to see a notification on his phone, he opens the message to see a short rundown of what Mr. Fujiwara thinks they're supposed to do. It wasn't much, but Changmin was sure he, Yunho, Sungmin, and Kyuhyun could improvise along the way.

 

The door opens to reveal a middle-aged man with a warm smile and dark hair, introducing himself as Fujiwara. As if on queue, Kyuhyun turned the security cameras back on and closes his laptop. Sungmin glares at the smirking Kyuhyun.

 

**

 

They reached their hotel by 2 in the morning and this time, all four agents were barely awake. The coffee they had didn't help much and even Yunho, who had slept the whole journey, was already leaning on Sungmin for support.

 

"I swear they probably put some sort of sleeping drug in that coffee," whines Kyuhyun. "God, I can barely open my eyes."

 

"You're in no position to complain, Cho," snaps Changmin.

 

"Yeah?"

 

"For fuck's sake, I can't believe the guy I'm carrying is the one who complains a lot more than I do," Changmin threatened to drop Kyuhyun, who was currently clung onto his back, his legs supported by Changmin's arms.

 

"You were the one to offer to carry me," Kyuhyun retorted.

 

"I've been telling you to get off me for the past 5 minutes," Changmin seethes, "now, get the fuck off."

 

Kyuhyun rolls his eyes and got off Changmin. Yunho and Sungmin watch the scene unfold with unimpressed looks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> boring and rushed chapter zzz idkwhy the grammar is shitty and the humour is boring compared to the previous chapters i'm so sorry T_T 
> 
> thanks for reading and commenting!


	8. Preparations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yunho, Changmin, Sungmin, and Kyuhyun prepare for the mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok...i wont be able to update much the next few weeks because:  
> a) I have to do my thesis so I can graduate next year lmao   
> b) I have a study trip to a place outside of town for 4 days   
> c) Exams at the end of the month   
> d) I need to design things for a school festival   
> e) and lastly, I need to prepare for a painting exhibition 
> 
> so yeah, please do understand...

 The next morning, Yunho was awoken by a sudden loud noise. He turns around to see that one of their phones had gone off. Yunho vaguely remembers that the phone had been ringing many times before. Not caring that it didn't belong to him, he quickly takes the phone and picks it up.

 

"Hello?"

 

"Agent Jung, thank fuck!" it was Boa, and from the sound of it, she seemed quite irritated. "I've been trying to get through any of you but no luck!"

 

Yunho groans lightly and rubs his temples. "Sorry, Agent Kwon, we landed pretty late last night." Yunho barely remembered anything the moment he stepped into his hotel room. Looking around, he spotted Sungmin still fast asleep on the bed next to his while Kyuhyun fell asleep on his desk with his laptop open. Changmin was nowhere to be seen, Yunho guesses that he went out to get food. Though from the looks of it, it seemed like Changmin had slept...right next to him.

 

Yunho grits his teeth, having mixed feelings about it.

 

Ridiculous. He wasn't some love-struck high school kid.

 

He hears Boa sigh on the other line.

 

"I'll pretend that never happened and let it go. Just this once," Boa mutters, "Agent Jung, you may have heard from Agent Lee and Agent Cho about our additional plans..."

 

Yunho's smile immediately fell.

 

"Yeah, I did," he deadpans, "Boa, you're my closest friend next to Heechul. I trust you with my life. But I want to know why you have been keeping secrets from us recently. I'm a senior agent and one of the most trusted agents within the agency." Yunho did not care if he sounded like he was bragging.

 

"Yunho..." Boa never dropped first names on phone calls, "it's what the higher ups had told me. You know I work right under Kibum."

 

Yunho grimaces, not liking the name Boa had mentioned. "Kibum's a bitch. I don't care if he's listening to us right now, but he's a total bitch about everything. But I can't blame you for that. But in situations like these..."

 

He felt Boa shaking her head. "He has his reasons, Agent Jung. We need to trust him, it doesn't matter if he's unlikable, as much as we hate it, he's still our boss."

 

Yunho grimaces.

 

"Update me on the situation, Agent Jung," Boa was quick to change the subject.

 

"Well," Yunho began, scanning the room once more, "Agent Lee informed us all on the plan we're supposed to follow, and Agent Cho is handling his part very well, while Agent Shim..."

 

"Agent Shim...?"

 

Yunho shook his head. "He's doing alright. He left earlier. Probably to get food."

 

"Go find him, Agent Jung. We can't risk him being discovered by the enemy."

 

"Wh-what? No one knows him. He's new. Besides, if I go out, won't I get in trouble as well?" Yunho reasons. Yunho had millions of other better things to do instead of babysitting a grown ass man.

 

"Yunho! Just go find him!"

 

Yunho distances himself from his phone the moment Boa yelled. He saw Sungmin move in his sleep, probably startled by his boss. "Alright, alright, I'm getting up now." Yunho reluctantly left his comfy and soft hotel bed and straight towards the bathroom. "I'll talk to you later, Agent Kwon. Jung out," Yunho drones and ends the call without waiting for a reply.

 

Fuck this.

 

That brat had the audacity to leave the hotel room without telling anyone. In fact, he and Cho Kyuhyun should be sleeping in another room. Yunho had no idea why both of their youngest agents decided to crash in with them instead. Yunho was beyond pissed at this point. The mission hadn't officially begun yet and Changmin managed to piss him off already.

 

After washing up, Yunho marches out of the bathroom and slapped the back of Kyuhyun's head.

 

"Get up, Cho."

 

Kyuhyun was startled awake, eyes shot wide open. He wipes the drool from his chin and blinks several times. After a moment, he turns to glare at Yunho tiredly.

 

"You dick, what was that for?"

 

Yunho rolls his eyes.

 

"Well what are _you_ doing here? You and Shim have your own rooms," Yunho retorted.

 

Kyuhyun chose not to reply to that and emitted a loud groan instead. He unplugs the charger from his laptop and slowly gets up. He scans the room for a moment before speaking again.

 

"Where's Changmin?"

 

Yunho shrugs. "Kwon told me to look for him so he doesn't get lost or whatever."

 

Kyuhyun snorts. "Good luck with that. I'll wake up Min-hyung later so we can check out early." Yunho sighs as he watches Kyuhyun disappear into the bathroom. He walks out of the room after grabbing the card key.

 

He walks into the elevator and taps his foot impatiently as the elevator makes its way down to the ground floor. The door opens at the tenth floor, Yunho froze at the sight of a familiar face- not the familiar face he was hoping for, however.

 

It was their target, Yesung.

 

Yunho's blood ran cold. He manages to observe his target for a moment. He felt lucky that Yesung had his gaze cast downwards.

 

Yunho immediately looked away, grateful that he was wearing glasses right now. He hopes that Yesung does not recognize him as well.

 

He knew how dangerous Yesung was; he was part of a gang _and_ he works for Helios. His criminal record was probably even longer than that, probably longer than Kyuhyun's.

 

However, it appears to be not Yunho's morning.

 

"Have I seen you somewhere?"

 

Yunho swallows.

 

He shakes his head.

 

"No, I've never seen you before," Yunho replies, but in Japanese instead, hoping the latter doesn't reply.

 

Yesung chuckles. "I apologize for that. You seemed familiar." Yesung, obviously, knew a little bit of Japanese since he's been working here for some time. However, Yesung's last statement scared Yunho a bit. There was a big chance that Yesung was merely messing with him and that he knew about Yunho's identity and the whole mission. "You seem to understand Korean as well."

 

"I watch a lot of dramas."

 

Yesung chuckles at that.

 

The door opens again and Yunho notices they were finally on the ground floor. With that, he quickly bolts out of the elevator without looking suspicious. After reaching the breakfast buffet, he's lost sight of Yesung, much to his relief.

 

Which now lead to the most important question.

 

What the hell was Yesung doing here?

 

Yunho made sure to report that to Boa after he finds Changmin.

 

Speak of the devil, the brat was walking around the breakfast buffet, making googly eyes towards his surroundings.

 

Yunho rolls his eyes at that. He immediately walks over to Changmin and grips his elbow hard.

 

"What the fuck are you doing here."

 

Changmin seemed taken aback at first, but his expression turned angry afterwards. "Would you rather have me starving in our room? I tried waking all of you bozos up and none of you fucking did!" Changmin whisper shouted. He tries tugging his arm out of Yunho's grip, only for Yunho to tighten his grip on his elbow, causing Changmin to wince in pain.

 

"Watch your language, kid," Yunho growls, "I don't care if you starve to death, but always report to us wherever you go. We don't know when we'll run into the enemy."

 

Changmin grits his teeth. "You're speaking as if I'm that careless, you condescending jerk." Changmin tugs his arm rather harshly, only to hurt himself even more.

 

Yunho narrows his eyes at him.

 

"Let me go, Jung," Changmin hisses.

 

Yunho started dragging Changmin out of the buffet instead, ignoring the stares he earned from a few people. Changmin was red, if getting scolded in public was embarrassment, being dragged out like a kid made him want to ground to swallow him. Yunho managed to drag Changmin out of the building.

 

Unable to take the shame anymore, Changmin punches Yunho the moment they stepped into a secluded area. The elder's hands went to cover the swollen area caused by the younger man's fist. Changmin swore he saw bruises on his elbow.

 

"Fuck, what the hell is your problem, Jung!?" exclaims Changmin, "here I thought you were starting to tolerate me but what the fuck was that? I'm a grown man and you and your patronizing ass decided to humiliate me in front of people?"

 

Yunho's jaw clenches. "Well what the fuck were you doing there!?"

 

"You fucking know why! Why the fuck are you so worked up about this!?"

 

Yunho gripped the collar of Changmin's shirt and pulls him close. "I made contact with the enemy in this building."

 

Changmin's eyes went wide for a second.

 

"He's here?"

 

Yunho nodded.

 

"Shit," Changmin curses, looking away and then back to Yunho, "do Lee and Cho know about it?"

 

Yunho shook his head. "I'm about to inform them but I was looking for you so..."

 

Changmin rolls his eyes. "I'm a grown man and a trained spy. I know what to do if I ever run into him, stop patronizing me."

 

The older rolls his eyes and ignores the younger man's words while leading him back to their room.

* * *

 

"And that's our queue to check out," was the first thing Sungmin said the moment Yunho and Changmin entered the room with panicked looks. Kyuhyun was already cleaning up their things and Yunho went to help. Changmin stood still on his spot, surprised.

 

"How did you know-"

 

"Yunho texted me," Sungmin replies, "hurry and pack your things, Shim. We're going out."

 

Changmin slowly began to pick up his clothes on the floor. "Where are we going to?"

 

"Our headquarters in Japan. The gala's tonight and we're going to have to get ready by the time we get there. We're going to send someone to secure the place for our equipment," explained Sungmin.

 

"That 'someone' is me, for your information," drawls Kyuhyun.

 

Sungmin glares at him. "Must you show off about your tech skills all the time? No need to feel so insecure, Cho." Kyuhyun snorted at that.

 

"Well Mr. Kyuhyun 'I-can-hack-into-the-FBI-database-but-can't-get-the-fax-machine-to-work' Cho, we don't have all day. Might want to pick up your socks in the bathroom," Yunho suddenly says, causing the smirk to fall from Kyuhyun's face. The younger scoffs and marches into the bathroom. Sungmin snickers along with Yunho as they watched the dejected young man walk away. They shared a small high five before going back to work.

 

Changmin watches the other three interact in envy. Despite being the new guy, he did somewhat get along with them, but he could never connect with the others like they did. Though it was probably the fact that they've known each other their whole lives and Changmin had joined several weeks ago. However, Changmin couldn't hide the fact that he did want them to treat him like how they'd treat each other.

 

He glances between them and sighs deeply.

 

"I'm done packing," Changmin announces, "Shall I head down first?"

 

Yunho shook his head. "Not as long as our target's in the building."

 

Changmin was about to retort, only to be shut down by Sungmin. "Yunho's right, Changmin. We're both aware that this is your first mission and mistakes will be made, but you could help by listening to us and lessen the damage. Yesung could've spotted you."

 

Changmin clicks his tongue. "Well he didn't and he wouldn't know me; I'm new."

 

Sungmin smiles. "They're probably looking into your future spouse's unborn child right now."

 

"Yeah?"

 

"It's a metaphor," Yunho intervenes, "on how fast Helios collects data on us."

 

Changmin quirks a brow. "Interesting, I suppose?" he was unsure how to react to that. Both Sungmin and Yunho sighs at that.

 

Kyuhyun walks out of the bathroom with a pair of torn socks in his with a disgusted look. He notices the awkward atmosphere in the room and glances between the three quiet men in the room.

 

"So, anything exciting happened while I was gone?" Kyuhyun asks, sounding unsure.

 

Sungmin shook his head. "Hurry up. The faster we finish packing, the faster we get out."

 

* * *

 

Donghae was awoken by his own ringtone blaring in the room. His eyes shot open and he bolted for his phone, which startled a sleeping Hyukjae.

 

"Hello?"

 

Hyukjae was forced to get up as well. The older man grumbles as he glares at his boyfriend, who looked tired as well, but was talking on the phone.

 

"Ah, hyung!" Donghae's tone changes and Hyukjae took his time to observe the younger's face. "No, you didn't wake me up. How's Japan?"

 

Hyukjae rubbed his eyes tiredly whilst peering at Donghae curiously. The then tired and sleepy man was now fully awake and smiling. Seems like Donghae loves his brother a lot, just like Hyukjae does with his sister, though he couldn't imagine himself being this excited over talking to his older sibling after not seeing them in two days.

 

Speaking of Japan, Yunho, Sungmin, Kyuhyun, and Changmin have a mission in Japan to look for Yesung. Initially, Hyukjae had wanted to be the one to watch over Yunho and Changmin - along with Siwon, Hyukjae thought bitterly - , though it appeared that the director wanted a senior agent to supervise them instead, and Kyuhyun was added to the bunch since they wanted to train him to become an active field agent.

 

The sudden and one-sided decision Director Lee made baffled Hyukjae and the rest of his department. But of course, they all had to agree and go on with it, much to their reluctance.

 

"Ah you'll be back tomorrow morning right after the gala? Won't you be tired?" Donghae asks out loud, which piqued Hyukjae's interest.

 

If the gala Donghae mentioned was the same as the one Yunho and the others were going to, they're bound to meet then. Hyukjae quietly prays that Donghae's brother would be alright.

 

"Oh, I see," Donghae mutters, "well, you and your boss have fun there, I guess."

 

So Donghae's brother works for a company and he's in a high position to be able to go with his boss to a gala in Japan?

 

Donghae held the phone away from his ear as he heard his brother yell into the phone. "Okay, okay, he's not your boss, I get it. But he's still in a higher position than you are- no I am not degrading your job as an accountant!"

 

Hyukjae blinks.

 

"Well, I'll talk to you later I suppose," Donghae mutters sadly, "yeah, I'm alright. I'm staying with a friend." Hyukjae notices the frown in his eyebrows. "No I'm not texting you his address, asshole, what are you, an overprotective mother hen?"

 

Well Donghae's brother was certainly overbearing, Hyukjae thought.

 

"Hyung, I already did my military service, I can defend myself. Stop being so fucking paranoid," Donghae retorted. He sighs deeply before speaking again, "I'll talk to you later. Goodbye." Donghae ended the call and grumbles to himself.

 

"Overbearing older sibling?" Hyukjae asks, the younger merely stared blankly towards him, "don't worry, it happens to me too. My older sister can be really fussy."

 

"Isn't it ridiculous though? I'm in my 20's yet he treats me like when I was 14," Donghae scoffs.

 

Hyukjae snorted. "My sister still thinks I'm a toddler who hasn't been potty trained." Donghae snickers at that.

 

"Well..." Donghae trails off, eyes scanning his shirtless boyfriend who was next to him, "it's still early, don't you think?"

 

Hyukjae realizes what Donghae was hinting at. "Hae...I have work..."

 

"Well so do I," he practically purrs, "but well, you know, screw work. I know something you should screw instead." Donghae trails a finger down his boyfriend's pectoral.

 

Hyukjae felt his face go hot. "Fuck, I fucking hate cheesy lines like that and you know it."

 

"Because it turns you on."

 

"Does not," Hyukjae retorted, trying to look away from Donghae who was in the process of straddling him. "Fuck," Hyukjae's hand went up to cover his mouth and turns away from Donghae.

 

Donghae frowns. "Hyukjae...please?"

 

"I have work, Donghae."

 

"So do I and you'll be the one fucking me anyway, you have nothing to worry about."

 

Hyukjae sighs. "I'm not in shape and I have bad stamina right now."

 

Donghae groans. "Then I'll do the fucking."

 

Hyukjae's eyes widen. "Are you insane? I have work that requires me running around and physical exercise, excuse you." Yunho would definitely have his head if he thought about slacking off during work.

 

"But you said you're out of shape."

 

"Donghae..."

 

"Please...? You can just go slow or something..." Donghae begs, guiding Hyukjae's other hand on his hip.

 

Hyukjae suddenly smirks under his hand. Without warning, he flips his boyfriend and pins him down to the mattress. Donghae didn't look shocked, instead he was grinning in anticipation.

 

"Screw work, yeah?" Hyukjae mutters lowly before devouring the younger man's gaping mouth.

 

* * *

 

Somewhere in Japan, Yunho sneezes.

 

Sungmin looks at him worriedly.

 

"It's only dust," Yunho reassures, shrinking under Sungmin's concerned gaze, "I'll be sure to inform you if I have a cold."

 

They were currently changing into an appropriate attire for the gala in the headquarters' changing room. Sungmin was delighted by the choice of clothes they had, while the other three groans in reluctance after seeing hundreds of similar-looking suits.

 

"Good. I don't want any of you sick," says Sungmin. "This is a bit too tight for me," the latter complains, trying to stick a thigh into his pants.

 

Kyuhyun laughs on the other side of the room. "Ever since you got married you seem to be gaining a lot of weight, Min-hyung."

 

Sungmin glares at the younger. "They're muscles, not fat!"

 

"Sure they are, Min-hyung," Kyuhyun drawls, slipping the mask onto his face, "how do I look?" he turns to the three other men in the room.

 

Changmin scans Kyuhyun's appearance. "You won't be going into the gala, Kyuhyun."

 

Kyuhyun shook his head. "I'll be attending as a 'Kim Joosung' and I'll be taking my leave afterwards, which is the signal for you two to start your search and get comfy with Yesung."

 

Changmin makes a face. "Well, on the other hand, the red mask suits you well."

 

"Thanks."

 

Sungmin grumbles from another side. "Could you be original for once?" Kyuhyun and Changmin were met with Sungmin, who was clad in a mask similar to Kyuhyun's.

 

"I wore it first."

 

"Well I wore it better," retorted Sungmin.

 

Yunho was fixing the bowtie on his collar. "It's been a while since I've done a mission as important as this one. I'm a bit nervous."

 

"Jung Yunho? Nervous?" Kyuhyun gapes exaggeratedly, "I don't know him."

 

"You do know how critically important this mission is, Cho," Sungmin scolded, "one screw up and we're risking lives here. We have no idea how Yesung would react if our covers are blown."

 

"Let him be, Sungmin, The kid likes to live dangerously," Yunho retorted, which earned a chuckle from Kyuhyun.

 

"Dangerous is my middle name," Kyuhyun drones.

 

Sungmin rolls his eyes. "Anyways, we should get going. We need to check if everything's in place."

 

Kyuhyun's eyes gleam in excitement. "I feel like a kid being taken to the toy store for the first time."

 

Changmin snorted. "Are you that excited about this?"

 

Kyuhyun grins widely. "I never got much action ever since I started working here."

 

"The last time he got action was when I chased him around headquarters for blasting Backstreet Boys through the announcer," Yunho grumbles, images of the baffled look of the director were imprinted in his mind.

 

The latter nodded. "Good times, Jung."

 

The youngest in the room laughs at that, earning a scowl from Kyuhyun. But the moment a smiling Yunho decided to look at Changmin's eyes, the latter's smile had fallen from his face, replaced by an unreadable expression, though he appeared somewhat hesitant instead of cold.

 

Yunho frowns at that.

 

Suddenly, Sungmin dragged Kyuhyun out of the room, yelling at him to do something, which left Changmin alone in the changing room with Yunho. The two exchanged glances before looking away again, minding their own businesses. The younger of the two went to grab a comb in order to lessen the tension within him, while Yunho kept staring at the younger.

 

After a moment of silence, Yunho decided to break the ice since he was unable to take the tension in the air.

 

"Shim."

 

That word itself surprised Changmin.

 

The taller looks at Yunho hesitantly.

 

"I..." Yunho tries his hardest to avoid Changmin's curious gaze, "I..."

 

The younger quirks a brow. "You...?"

 

Swallowing his pride, Yunho sighs and forces himself to look up.

 

"I want to apologize," he spoke curtly, "for...the way I've been treating you the whole time."

 

Changmin's expression remains indifferent.

 

"What brought this on?"

 

The elder shrugs.

 

"Now or never, I guess," the elder mutters lowly.

 

Changmin snorted.

 

"I could appreciate you trying," Changmin replies, "but sincerity is an important factor."

 

The elder's eye twitches. "Fine. I felt really bad. You're not a bad guy or anything and I tolerate you. Doesn't mean I like you, Shim." The younger's smirk fell from his face once more.

 

"The feeling's mutual, Jung," Changmin snaps back, feeling quite irritated by Yunho's attitude already. He felt like that there was indeed no end to their mutual hatred.

 

Yunho's glances at him one last time before walking out of the room and left an irritated Changmin behind. The younger agent scowls and follows him out.

 

"Who the hell does he really think he is," he mutters to himself.

 

Changmin ignores the strange feeling down his stomach.

 

Perhaps deep down, Yunho's gesture did please him in a way.

 

As much as he would like to deny it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some reminders!  
> a) this fic is a humour fic, so there may be some things you find unrealistic, but happens for the sake of the story (or the comedy)  
> b) dont ask if this is hyukhae/haehyuk pls. just dont.   
> c) there will be some angsty and triggering things...i'll tag accordingly, dont worry   
> d) this is a s l o w b u r n fic. yh and cm wont start developing feelings until some time. i need to focus on the reason behind their dislike towards each other first haha.   
> e) nice comments/critique/kudos = fuel for update, unrealistic/rude demands = a grumpy author


	9. Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changmin, Yunho, Sungmin, and Kyuhyun arrive at the building.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's been 84 years since i last updated my homin fics i'm s o r r y. 
> 
> but i'm updating both peachy and paint it red today so hope you guys enjoy the update:p 
> 
>  
> 
> i apologize for the grammar mistakes in advance bc my english has been shit recently haha

It wasn't long until their mission. They were given 5 minutes to prepare before heading to the gala. Sungmin and Yunho were off doing their own things, while Changmin went to follow Kyuhyun outside. After his 'confrontation' with Yunho, Changmin felt quite off. It wasn't anger nor hate, but something he has never felt before in his life, especially towards someone like Yunho, and it definitely scared him.

 

"Kyuhyun-"

 

"It's _Kim Joosung_ ," the elder corrected swiftly, which earned an annoyed look from Changmin. "We should start using the names boss gave us." While this was Changmin's first field mission, he definitely knew when to act professional or joke around. Clearly, Kyuhyun has been behind the monitor in his basement for far too long.

 

Changmin rolls his eyes. "Fine, _Joosung_."

 

Kyuhyun smiles cheekily. "So, you were saying, _Taehyun_?"  

 

The younger scratches his neck at the sudden feeling of embarrassment. "It's a bit embarrassing-"

 

Kyuhyun shook his head. "Come on, you can tell me. I won't laugh. You don't have to tell everything, but it's good that you want to talk about it at all." Changmin has not known Kyuhyun for a long time, but it was enough time to know that Changmin wasn't the type to talk about his feelings.

 

Changmin huffs and mutters something barely audible to Kyuhyun's ears.

 

The shorter man raises a brow. "Uh, can you speak up?"

 

"I said," Changmin's face was slightly red now, "it's about Jung."

 

Kyuhyun's eyes widen, but his lips curves into a smirk. "Yunho, huh...somehow, I saw this coming?"

 

Changmin glares at him. "It's not what you think!"

 

"Sure it isn't."

 

"I'm serious!" Changmin lifted his finger to point at the shorter man's direction.

 

Kyuhyun chuckles at Changmin's flustered state. "Alright, I'm listening, do continue," he glances at his watch, "better make it fast, though."

 

Changmin wasted no time. "Every time we talk, there's always this...weird feeling. Like when he gets mad, I'm not annoyed, but I get so riled up and...excited," Changmin was beet red at the end of his sentence. "Like, I hate him, but I don't hate him. I enjoy his presence as much as it annoys me and the fact that he despises and patronizes me, but- I don't know!"

 

Kyuhyun watches his friend break into a mumbling red mess before him with amusement. He chuckles mischievously before slinging an arm around Changmin's shoulders.

 

"Someone's in loooove," he spoke in a singsong tone.

 

"It's not love! What are you, 12?"

 

"Yeah, then what is it-"

 

"Shim, Cho! We're moving out!" a loud voice interrupted their conversation. Kyuhyun sighs before removing himself from Changmin and went to Yunho's direction. The elder was currently glaring at Changmin, who glares back in return. Kyuhyun was oblivious to the exchange currently happening while Sungmin was busy telling him off for joking around before a mission.

 

Changmin sluggishly follows behind, all enthusiasm and energy gone.

 

He passes Yunho on his way out, where the elder had grabbed his wrist harshly.

 

"Shim," Yunho spoke monotonously, "if you're taking this seriously, I would advice not bothering other agents in work."

 

Changmin winces at the tight grip, but he guesses that Yunho was not trying to hurt him, it's just that he had a really tight grip in general. He scoffs hearing the words that left his partner. "Are you seriously implying that I'm the one bothering Kyuhyun and not the other way around?" He wasn't trying to offend Kyuhyun, but Changmin sure Yunho knew what he meant.

 

After a short moment of silence, Yunho lets Changmin's wrist fall from his palm. The younger rubs the slightly bruised wrist with a cocky smirk.

 

"That's what I thought."

 

Yunho frowns deeper.

 

"Arrogance is not a good look on you."

 

"Neither is having a stick up your ass."

 

Yunho's jaw drops slightly and Changmin internally celebrates his victory over Yunho. He giggles at the sight of a confused and flustered Yunho, who seemed lost after Changmin's comeback.

 

Changmin walks away and sees Kyuhyun and Sungmin entering a black car while a grunt lead him into another.

 

Which meant that he was sharing a car with Yunho.

 

Changmin wanted nothing more than the ground to swallow him now.

 

**

 

The ride was painfully awkward with neither side exchanging a single word. Yunho did occasionally glance towards Changmin, who was lost in thought as he stared out the window.

 

Yunho so really wanted to start a conversation with him, for the sake of at least acting like decent human beings toward each other rather than vicious cavemen who wanted nothing but to kill one another.

 

Unfortunately, they reached their destination faster than expected. Changmin immediately went to put on his mask while Yunho follows the same.

 

"Remember," Yunho starts, "I'm Yoo Eunho, Kyuhyun's-"

 

"Kim Joosung. I'm Choi Taehyun and Sungmin-hyung is Kang Dongshin. I get it."

 

Yunho narrows his eyes, but smiles a little.

 

"Good. I'm impressed."

 

"Am I supposed to celebrate or-"

 

"Shut up."

 

An older man in a suit opened the car door and his face was covered as well. Yunho flashes a kind smile at him and gets off the car after muttering a thank you. Changmin did the same before closing the door himself and following behind Yunho.

 

They stated their identities by the entrance door before they were let in.

 

Changmin took his time observing his surroundings carefully. There were many men and women of different races clad in fancy-looking outfits. There were several familiar faces that Changmin had seen before on TV or the news despite their faces being covered by a mask.

 

The interior of the building itself impressed Changmin. He's never seen or been into a ballroom as large as this one. The chandelier hanging in the middle of the room was outstanding and Changmin was somewhat afraid that it could fall off at any moment.

 

Changmin looks down to see his boring black suit and compared himself to the other guests who adorned branded white suits that Changmin could never afford with his lifetime salary.

 

If we were to be honest right now, he felt a bit lost and out of place.

 

He fixes the mask that was perched on his face before turning to face Yunho, who was equally impressed by his surroundings, as if it was the first time for him as well.

 

"Eunho," Changmin whispered.

 

For a moment, Yunho forgot that Changmin was addressing him until realization hit him.

 

"Uh, yes, Taehyun?"

 

Changmin shudders at the sudden goose bumps he felt. "I feel very out of place here. It's my first time invited to an event like this."

 

Yunho looks at him in confusion until his eyes widens in realization, remembering how Changmin's past was like.

 

"Oh- _oh._ Well...if it makes you feel better, it's been a while since I was invited into a place like this as well," Yunho replies, "Heechul and I were often sent to do the more dirty work. This is Hyuk and Won's expertise."

 

"Then why were we sent here?"

 

Yunho shrugs. "The reason varies. One being that our current mission requires yours and _Joosung's_ skills. Since well, you both are IT experts and hacking experts as well apparently. Won and Hyuk are basically the best liars in our team. We got _Dongshin_ to accompany us as well to look after us and observe how you do in the field. Joosung's here because he's going to be promoted to a field agent soon."

 

"Aren't all agents in our division required to have that sort of skill? Hacking and shit, I mean."

 

"Not really..." Yunho replies hesitantly, "they have more than basic knowledge, yes, but you, Chul, and Joosung are our experts. I'm just a level below you."

 

Changmin decided not to ask anymore questions despite wanting to be civil around Yunho.

 

"We should look for Joosung and Dongshin," Yunho suddenly says, "you take west and I take east."

 

Changmin nods curtly before making his way into the crowd.

 

He wasn't the type to be intimidated by a large crowd, but right now, he feels as if everyone's burning a hole through his head with their sharp gazes on him. While he wasn't a flashy dresser, his tall figure, which towered most of the people there, definitely drew attention.

 

Changmin spotted the familiar figure of his senior, Sungmin, and hurried his way there.

 

Only to have his elbow grabbed by someone.

 

Changmin groans in annoyance. Seems like everyone has a tight grip today.

 

Changmin's face shifts back into an unreadable expression before slowly turning around.

 

The man wasn't Asian. He guesses that he was from Europe or America judging from his looks.

 

"Excuse me, you looked a bit lost there," surprisingly, he was fluent in Japanese.

 

Changmin wanted to be nice, but the guy was obviously trying something with him.

 

"I'm not. Please let go of me." Changmin tugs his arm a bit, not wanting to cause a scene by kicking the guy in his nuts.

 

The man smiles. "Why the rush? It's not a bad party is it?"

 

It technically wasn't that much of a party, but Changmin shrugs. "It's okay. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to talk to someone..." Changmin flashes a forced smile before wiggling his arm even more.

 

"Why don't you keep me company instead?" The man 'innocently' asked which made Changmin want to roll his eyes far back. Changmin manages to wriggle his arm out of the man's grasp with a jerked movement.

 

"No. I'm sorry. I don't even know you. I need to go now," Changmin was trying very, very hard to sound polite despite his gritted teeth.

 

"Well, my name's-"

 

"He's not interested," a familiar voice interrupted. It was Sungmin and he did not look very happy. "Please excuse us..." Sungmin grabs Changmin's elbow lightly and tugs him towards a different direction, leaving the man from earlier with a baffled look.

 

Changmin stumbles a bit when Sungmin stopped his tracks.

 

"You need to loosen up a bit. You looked way too tense and you seem distracted. Enemies see that as an opportunity to mess with you. Like that guy earlier," Sungmin gestures the man with his eyes.

 

Changmin bit his lower lip.

 

"It's my first time in a crowd like this. I mean, a crowd full of guys in Armani suits and other branded outfits I can never afford with my lifetime salary," Changmin stresses.

 

Sungmin did not look impressed.

 

"Are you implying they don't pay us well? Have you seen my thousand dollar suit?" Sungmin gestures his body, which was clad in, unsurprisingly, an Armani suit as well. Changmin blinks twice.

 

Sungmin slaps his back a bit too harsh.

 

"Working on the field means no fuck-ups, got it? I worked my ass off for the director to put you out here and you better make it worth it for me," Sungmin scolded. "Now go, I'm supposed to meet up with Joosung again soon."

 

Changmin twitches. "But Dongshin-"

 

"I thought you were hired here due to your communication skills. I'm here to evaluate you and if you can't do your job right, you're going back on the streets," Sungmin snaps.

 

That shut Changmin up and the younger watches the shorter man walk away casually as if nothing happened. Their little banter attracted no attention and was probably unheard due to the loud music playing. It wasn't anything upbeat, but it was pretty loud orchestral music.

 

But Sungmin was right. Changmin was being overly anxious and nervous about the whole mission and he should be focusing on what he has to do right now. He was lucky that Sungmin was the one to scold him rather than Yunho. While Kyuhyun would probably try to beat the guy up and cause an even bigger commotion.

 

He straightens his suit before walking off to find Yunho.

 

**

 

Yesung was a very observant man.

 

He watches the lanky man clad in a silver mask stumble a bit as he walked somewhere.

 

Yesung remembered a man in the breakfast buffet with a similar build, and that man was SM's newest field agent, Shim Changmin.

 

Then again, he could be mistaken, but Yesung decided to keep an extra eye out for him. If he was Changmin, then Yunho should be around as well.

 

Yesung smiles to himself. He's figured everything out way ahead of them.

 

**

 

"Ah, you must be Yoo Eunho," the voice startled Yunho from his search for Kyuhyun. But at the corner of his eye, he sees a short man in red mask talking to a taller man with a similar mask and Yunho guesses that Sungmin had found Kyuhyun already. He glances down to his watch and the true mission was supposed to start soon.

 

"And who might you be?" Yunho raises a brow.

 

"I'm Frank."

 

From 9 years of experience, Yunho knew to never trust a white man named Frank when working on the field. Especially when they speak fluent Japanese.

 

Yunho fakes a smile.

 

"You already know me," Yunho replies and shook his hand.

 

"You're work in TYCHE?" Frank enquires, "Mr. Fujiwara over there told me just in case you're wondering."

 

Yunho glances back to see that the man was preparing for his speech. He was relieved that Fujiwara was the one to tell him, rather than Frank himself finding out. He sighs in relief.

 

"Yes, I do."

 

Frank started going on and on about the company he owned and how he was the CEO. Yunho pretended to look interested but of course, he was grateful for the mask that concealed half of his annoyed look. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Changmin making his way towards him.

 

He saw the younger visibly tense around Frank, but looked professional nevertheless.

 

"Eunho," Changmin suddenly butts in, "the speech is starting soon. We should be seated now."

 

Frank looks at the two men.

 

"Ah, you're the one from earlier," Frank suddenly says, pretending to sound surprised, if Changmin's senses were correct.

 

Changmin visibly looked annoyed but kept a straight face instead.

 

"There's only one floor here and it's not that spacey. We're bound to run into each other," Changmin responded dryly, he gave Yunho a pleading look in his eyes. "Eunho, let's go."

 

Frank turns to Yunho.

 

"Who is this man?"

 

Changmin's eyes widen for a second before grabbing Yunho's wrist. "If you'll excuse us. Boss is demanding our presence." Yunho complies and follows Changmin away from the man, whose eyes still followed them.

 

Yunho and Changmin sat themselves on their designated seats and Changmin sighs in relief.

 

"You're still a bit awkward," Yunho commented, "but I don't think he suspects anything."

 

Changmin huffs. "That creep tried to make a move on me earlier. If it wasn't for Dongshin, I would've kicked him in the nuts." Something within Yunho churns at the mention of what happened to Changmin.

 

Yunho suppresses a laugh. "Well, what's stopping you?"

 

"Don't wanna cause a commotion," he grumbles in reply. "Did you find Joosung?"

 

Yunho nodded. "Dongshin beat me to it. The mission will be executed soon. I've requested Fujiwara to place our seats near Jongwoon's."

 

Changmin nodded.

 

"Lying and acting are harder than they look," Changmin says softly.

 

Yunho hums.

 

"Took me years to able to control my expressions when telling a lie," Yunho responded, "Hyuk and Won are much better than I am. They're naturals." Yunho turns to face Changmin. "Honestly, you're doing much better than I did on my first mission."

 

Changmin chuckles smugly. "Am I now?"

 

Yunho's brow twitches. "Don't get cocky."

 

Changmin's fingers went to lift the crystal glass in front of him. "Your words mean a lot to me, Mr. Yoo."

 

Yunho rolls his eyes and went to face the stage where Fujiwara was testing the microphone. He glances at his watch and his communicator finally came to life.

 

_"Agent Jung?"_

Changmin was startled by the sudden noise from his ear. He momentarily forgot about the communicator that Kyuhyun had given them when they were getting ready.

 

Yunho whispers back a reply, but it was clearly heard in Changmin's ears.

 

"Agent Lee?"

 

_"No, it's Cho speaking."_

Yunho sighs. "Our target hasn't been spotted yet, fortunately, he's seated right next to us on the same table. What's our next move?"

 

Kyuhyun was silent for a moment. _"Get comfy with him. Talk about our company or even your made-up family. You know the drill."_

"Understood, but I doubt you know 'the drill' at all, Cho," Yunho slightly smiles when he hears Kyuhyun sigh on the other line.

 

_"Where's Shim?"_

"Here, Cho," Changmin was quick to reply.

 

_"Heard about what happened just then. You holding good?"_

"If I get the chance, I want to kick him in the balls. Hard." Changmin hated the feeling of degradation as much as the next person. Yunho put him through hell for the first few weeks and Changmin can no longer bottle up said feelings any longer. He wanted to kick someone in the balls. If not Frank, Yunho would do good as well.

 

Kyuhyun chuckles. _"I support you. Well, good luck. If you need permission to do anything, Min-hyung is in charge of that. While I'd be happy to provide needed information."_

Yunho sighs. Kyuhyun had a lot to learn. He wondered why the director was hesitant about Changmin but put someone like Kyuhyun in with no second thought. While Yunho respected Kyuhyun, the man wasn't trained for fieldwork. He looks around and saw Kyuhyun and Sungmin sat somewhere else in the room. Kyuhyun looked a bit giddy, while Sungmin was busy with his phone.

 

Sungmin and Kyuhyun are supposed to leave after Fujiwara's greeting speech. After that, they're meant to make their way into a small shack near the building where they would operate the building's security, electricity, and so on.

 

Suddenly, the seat next to Yunho was no longer occupied and he was met with a familiar-looking man.

 

It was Jongwoon in a black mask.

 

Yunho eyes him slowly before subtly poking Changmin's sides to grab his attention. Changmin was alarmed for a moment but remained calm on his chair.

 

Jongwoon turns to Yunho and flashes him a grin.

 

"Crowded place, isn't it?"

 

Yunho chuckles.

 

"Some of them are from outside of Asia. Mr. Fujiwara has many connections, it seems," Yunho mutters in reply.

 

Jongwoon nodded. "Well Fujiwara Group is a large company." Jongwoon went to sip from his glass. "I'm Jongwoon. I work for Fujiwara Group."

 

Yunho nodded. "Eunho. I work for TYCHE."

 

Changmin watches Yunho and Jongwoon exchange words regarding their respective companies. Changmin catches Jongwoon occasionally glancing at his direction.

 

"And who might he be?" Yunho turns around to look at Changmin before looking back to Jongwoon.

 

"He's Taehyun."

 

"I'm Mr. Kang Eunchul's secretary." 'Kang Eunchul' is the 'CEO' of TYCHE. Yunho and Heechul made that name up.

 

"Our boss couldn't attend so here we are," Yunho says in a joking tone, earning a chuckle from Jongwoon.

 

Changmin couldn't keep up with Yunho and Jongwoon's conversation and excuses himself to the bathroom right before Fujiwara started his speech. He saw Kyuhyun and Sungmin in another table getting ready to leave. Changmin exchanges eye contact with Kyuhyun, who gave him a thumb up, and Sungmin, who glances at him knowingly.

 

He knew something was wrong when the lights went out and the sound an bloodcurdling scream pierced his ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't hate me for the cliffhangers lmaooooo 
> 
> just before anyone asks, no, kyumin won't be a pairing. sungmin is married here and love isn't in kyu's dictionary.

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed the chapter !! sorry for the mistakes if i made any and feedback is very much appreciated !!


End file.
